Aphrodite's Lineage
by WhiteEnsigma
Summary: Living in hiding his whole life, he never expected to fall in love with an only child of a royal family under his circumstances. MPREG. TeFu. Historical. Image credit to I Love Fuji
1. Chapter 1

**GE 67 (God's Era 67)**

"Hiro…Take her…t-take her and go."

Heavy panting and damped air filled the rocky cave.

The man took his newborn daughter into his arms that was handed to him from the woman.

"Wh-what about you?" Hiro, the man, frowned. The beads of anxiety sweat rolled from his forehead. The worried creases on his forehead deepened when the woman didn't respond right away as she breathed heavily. "Aphrodite."

The heavenly beautiful woman looked up at the man from her position on the stone bed. She felt tired, extremely exhausted, but she summoned enough strength to give the man that made their daughter possible an assuring smile. "Go." She said softly. "You must save her. Protect her. Care for her. And love her. Think of me as you look at her, and she will bring you happiness in your life." She quiveringly lifted her arm toward the man beside the stone bed.

Hiro took it and let tears moistened his face. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He kissed her knuckle desperately and lovingly. "You wouldn't have died if it wasn't for me."

"No." She closed her eyes, feeling her life slipping away every second. "If I didn't meet you, I wouldn't have experienced this happiness, and I feel no regret. But please, there is no time. Go." She held his gaze with her opened eyes.

Outside the cave, an army of Zeus led by Ares surrounded the cave mouth.

Hiro heard the shouts of war cry outside and he stood up quickly. "I will love her as you asked me to." He promised and placed a swift kiss on her dampened forehead.

Aphrodite nodded weakly and tears fell from her tired eyes.

With a last squeeze of their adjoining hands, Hiro let go and fled in the opposite direction of the cave mouth. He needed to get out and away.

Ares shouted warnings, and upon receiving no answer, he entered the cave. Not too far in, he spotted Aphrodite lying on the stone bed quietly with her tearful eyes opened in the solemnest altitude of a mother losing a child.

Ares approached her with a serious face. His eyes wandered from her face to her flat belly, and he immediately frowned. "Where is the child?"

Aphrodite turned to look at Ares and smiled. "You will never find her."

Enraged, Ares shouted to the men behind him. "Find the human and the half-breed child at all cost."

The men immediately dismissed on order.

Ares came closer to Aphrodite. "Why must you do this?" He asked solemnly.

Aphrodite gently answered. "I love Hiro."

"He is a human." Ares spat angrily as he curled up his fists. "You are a Goddess. You knew Gods are never to be with humans."

"Death doesn't scare me, Ares. Even if death promises for falling in love with a human."

"Not just falling in love. A child you had with him."

"I have no regret. You have come to kill, then let it be. I have nothing else to say."

Closing his eyes in bottomless sadness, Ares raised his spear and pierced it through Aphrodite's heart.

**HE 7 (Human's era)**

60 years had passed since Kame was born. And now, Hiro was laying on his death bead telling his daughter about her mother for the first time in her life.

"You must keep this secret even if it costs you your life."

"Yes, Father."

At his last minute of life, Kame promised her father to pass on the story of her mother Aphrodite, to every of her future descendants along with the secret.

Because of the failed search for the child of Aphrodite, Zeus sent Ares down to earth to continue searching for the child as a mortal.

Like the Aphrodite lineage, the Ares lineage was consequently passed down with only one object of existence: to find and exterminate Aphrodite' descendent.

**TE 32 (Tezu Era)**

For many generations, the line of Aphrodites was secure and safe.

Ayumi, of the Aphrodites lineage, married the Prince of the Fujiwara Kingdom and became Queen.

"Ayumi-sama! The palace is under attack!" Fujiwara's council of 9 men ran into the Queen's chamber haphazardly. She just gave birth to her third child.

She had sent her 2 older children away with a trustworthy advisor from her court ahead of time. From the moment her second child was born, she knew he was the one. Because of the Aphrodite blood flowing through his veins, Ayumi sent Syusuke away first with Yumiko, to whom she had revealed the secret blood line.

"Where is the King?" Ayumi inquired tiredly.

"His Majesty is currently fighting the war at front. Some enemies have infiltrated the palace already, my Queen. We must leave with the young prince."

"I afraid I can't go with you." Ayumi looked solemnly at her newborn child. She really had no energy left after giving birth to flee. She rubbed the child's supple cheeks and nose lovingly, pouring her tears down her face. "My child. Poor my child. You are fated to grow up without a mother."

"Your Highness." A council member said softly. "We don't have much time left."

Ayumi nodded in comprehension and lifted the child in her arms toward the council. "Kajimoto-san. I'm leaving Yuuta in your hands. Please protect him and reunite him with Yumiko and Syusuke."

The eldest of the council went forward and received the child. They bowed to the Queen. "We promise you Your Highness. Please rest assured that we will raise him up well."

The Queen nodded in satisfaction. "Thank you all."

The council left. As soon as they reached the hill outside the Kingdom, the Queen's chamber was on fire and the rebels successfully took over the Fujiwara Kingdom.

Leon, descendent of Ares, had successfully overthrown the Fujiwara throne. He sat on the throne as he remembered his late father's word.

"_Out there somewhere, you must find the child with the rose birthmark engraved behind the neck. You must kill the child, only then can you become an immortal and replace my name in the Kingdom of Heaven. There is a secret that can greatly help you in your search."_

"_What is it, Father?"_

"_The blood of Aphrodite can be passed onto a male, giving him the ability to reproduce like a female."_

A cynical smirk appeared on his face. He waited for the immortal transformation, but it didn't come to him. "So the child escaped."

A men in black cloak appeared. "Master, everyone is exhilarated as you wanted."

Leon nodded. "Very well, but the one that needs to die is yet dead." The search was still on.

**TE 48 **

48 years ago, Tezuka Kunikazu had won the battle of royalty over Alabaster Kingdom. Today, his son, Tezuka Kuniharu was the King ruling over the Kingdom in peace with his wife, Queen Ayana.

Prince Tezuka Kunimitsu, the only beloved son of the King and Queen turned 22 on Autumn of this year.

Autumn was a beautiful season clearly because of the on-going colorful falling leaves. Not just because Autumn was the month in which Tezuka was born in, but Tezuka truly loved the cool breeze and auburn autumn skies.

Tezuka liked to leave the safety of his home in the palace. Due to some insecure circumstances, the King and Queen were constantly against the idea of Tezuka wandering off to no where at random times. Tezuka obediently nodded quietly when his parents gave him that lecture, but no promises were ensured.

"Tezuka-sama. We really need to get back, or your parents will suspect." Oishi Syuuchiro, the young prince's closest bodyguard said in an anxious voice.

Like usual, Tezuka shook his head in defeat and nodded. "It's no fun being watched everywhere I go. Its disturbing."

Oishi glanced at the forlorn look on his charge's face. "You are the only heir to the throne. If something happens to you, the Kingdom will be in great chaos. You must understand."

Tezuka sighed. "I know."

They walked in silence through the secret path back to the palace.

Tezuka climbed in through the window to his room to prevent suspicion from the guards that stood in front of his door. He quickly changed into his royalty clothes and left the room to get something to eat.

**AN: For Kyubeihime.**


	2. Chapter 2

The village that they were now a resident of was hidden in a small forest in the mountain. The dwelling was small and humble despite them being born of royalty. The size was comparable to most of the cottage in the village.

The reason was because they knew that Leon and his army were still tracking them down, and they had to lay low. There was no way that Leon would believe they had died in the flame with their mother.

He remembered that day well even though he was only 6 years old and his older sister 13. The blood and gore with the smell of death filled the air that once used to be fresh and lively. There was no life on their path when they ran away, only dead bodies that were brutally killed. If not for their guardian, they would have been one of the many dead bodies on that piece of land.

Their guardian, the one whom their mother entrusted to protect them, died 5 years ago due to an illness. Now, he was 22 and his sister 29. They had been living the commoner's life for 16 long years.

Those first few years were terrifying for both him and his sister. They ate what the wilderness grown for them when they were hiding from Leon's army. They dwelled in a slimy rocky cave, eating a week's meal that was meant for one day. His childhood was not what everyone would experience. The fear and terror of being found were always there.

Syusuke shook his head to rid the past memories. Yumiko sent him to get firewood to stock up for the raining season that was coming soon. After packing the dry branches into 2 big bundles, he picked them up and headed home.

"I'm back!" Syusuke called out before he even opened the door. He then opened the lock and pushed the wooden door open.

Yumiko came out from her small bedroom to help Syusuke. "I was getting worried because you took longer than usual." She said with a soft smile, picking up the bundles and walked over to their storage room to stack the bundles onto the other bundles.

"Ah. That was because I suddenly remember that our parents' death anniversary is tomorrow."

The siblings' emotions changed.

"I wanted to get some flowers for them on the way home." He continued.

Yumiko walked out of the storage room with a sad smile, one that showed she was trying to hold in the tears. "The time flew by very fast, ne? 16 long years and we're still alive. It's a miracle."

Fuji chuckled softly. Yes, their fate were indeed very lucky as they were still alive and lived peacefully. "I still remember what they look like. Mother was beautiful and Father was regal, like a knight."

"Yes." Yumiko sighed softly and smiled. "If I remember correctly, you resemble mother very much."

Syusuke looked at his sister before looking away. "Does it make you sad, nee-san, that I remind you of our mother?"

Yumiko walked over and hugged her brother. "No. It actually makes me happy. You know, although we no longer have our parents, we are still able to survive and live a happy life like this. I'm glad."

Syusuke walked out of the embrace and took her hands with a curious face. "Nee-san, have you ever thought about taking revenge?"

Yumiko blinked as she regarded her brother's face. There was no animosity present on Syusuke's face, but pure innocent curiosity. She shook her head with a small smile. "No. What about you?"

"I don't know nee-san." He looked away as if in guilt. "I really want to do so, but there is something that is stopping me thinking about it…Its like there's a voice in my head that tells me to live on and forget the past…but I cannot seem to forget the past. I don't know nee-san. I'm really confused."

Yumiko thinned her lips and walked over to the table with chairs, pulling her brother along to sit down at the worn wooden chairs. "Maybe that's how it is Syusuke. Maybe fate has planned something larger for us in the future." She patted Syusuke's hand. "I believe Mother and Father will be happy seeing us living peacefully like this. They wouldn't want to take revenge because there is no possibility that it will bring the dead back to the living, right?"

Syusuke nodded. "Yes."

Yumiko smiled and stood up. "Go wash up and I'll bring out dinner."

Syusuke smiled.

Yumiko watched her brother walked to his room. She wondered if what Syusuke told her earlier about the unknown voice in his head had anything to do with the enigma that their Mother told her before they separated. _I wonder if I should tell him one day…_

-..-..-..-..-..-

"Kunimitsu!"

Tezuka whipped his head over to the open pavilion to see his mother sitting with a few of the court maidens and walked over to them. He lowered his head into a bow in respect for the Queen his mother. "Mother, good morning."

The court maidens stood up and bowed to Tezuka, to whom he gave a curt nod back.

Ayana, Queen of Alabaster and wife of Kuniharu, smiled brightly and took her son's hands into hers. "Did you have your breakfast?"

"Yes, Mother." He replied.

Ayana nodded in satisfaction since her son rarely ate breakfast. She always scolded him for that. "That's good. Where are you heading to?"

"I was on my way to the dojo." He replied.

"Ah. I should let you go then, but don't forget, there's a party tonight. Make sure you prepare and come on time." She reminded him in a strict tone, yet motherly. As a mother, she knew most of what Tezuka disliked and liked and Tezuka specifically hated parties, unless it was for a political purpose.

Tezuka groaned internally and repressed rolling his eyes, which he didn't do normally. "Yes." He riposted in a small voice.

Tezuka bid her goodbye before continuing his way over to the dojo.

-..-..-..-..-..-

It rained, turning the graveyard's ground muddy and slippery.

Syusuke stood drenched in the rain with his sister. They had been standing before a stone slate for a while now, no one said anything since they arrived. The flowers that Syusuke picked yesterday were in the earthen vase beside the stone slate. On the slate carved '_Here Lies our Beloved' _like the rest, but there wasno name was on it.

"Mother, Father. It's another year." Yumiko said softly. The rain mixed in with her tears.

"We are living very well and…we miss you both…even Yuuta…" Syusuke remembered his baby brother that his mother carried when he fled. The passing cold wind leaked through his clothes and he shivered, but he stood his ground. "Nee-san is turning 29 this year and there is a boy next door who likes her very much."

It was like this on this day of every year. The 2 siblings spent their day in front of their parents' stone slate and talked as if their parents were there.

The sad atmosphere loosened up.

Yumiko smiled, looking over her brother. "His name is Tetsuya, Mother."

Syusuke nodded with a smile. "He is very kind. That's why…Mother and Father need to give them your blessing, so nee-san can start a family of her own."

The two sat down on the wet ground, not minding the mud that would stick to their clothes.

Syusuke continued. "They are getting married in a few months."

Yumiko grasped her brother's cold hand as she looked at the slate. "Even when I'm married, I promise you both to take care of Syusuke. I won't let him be alone, not now and not in the future."

Syusuke cringed his nose a little in wonder. "Yuuta. I wonder if he is still alive. But Mother, would he look like father if he is still alive?"

Sitting aside listening to Syusuke's self-talk, Yumiko felt guilty. They should have looked for their youngest, but Yumiko relented because she didn't know where to begin the search and Yuuta could be anywhere _if_ he was still alive. She didn't want to risk their identities being known by anyone. "Syusuke, I'm sure Mother and Father will bring Yuuta back to us sooner or later."

Syusuke stopped talking and looked side way at Yumiko's crestfallen smile. He nodded and lapped his other hand over his sister's. "I do hope so. I really want to see what he looks like, so that we will know find him easier."

"You know Syusuke, sometimes, you don't need to know anything about Yuuta to find him. Because you will feel it when you meet him for the first time. It's the chemistry of life."

"Really?" Syusuke's smile brightened up a notch.

Yumiko nodded and glanced over to the spot where she knew Tetsuya was standing briefly. "It is the same for a soul mate."

"So you knew it right away that Tetsuya is your soul mate when you first met him?"

Yumiko ran a hand through Syusuke's wet hair. "Yeah, it was there. The feeling. Everything. You will know it when you meet your other half, Syusuke."

Syusuke looked up into the sky. "Then I want to meet that person soon." He couldn't help but be envious when he saw how happy Yumiko became when Tetsuya was beside her.

Even though the rain got heavier as the hours go by, Syusuke and Yumiko sat there talking until the sky darkened completely.

It was their family reunion.

From afar, Tetsuya stood with an open umbrella over his head and another closed one in hand. He knew the siblings' routine and he didn't want to intrude into their time. He understood how important this day was to them, so all he could do was to watch out for them.

-..-..-..-..-..-

_Whoosh!_

A silver blade barely sliced through his neck once he was near the dojo. If not for the years under his master's austere training, he would have been headless.

"Your reflex has improved greatly, my apprentice." The voice of his old master rang, but his body was nowhere in sight.

"It is all thanks to you master." Tezuka replied with awareness but with mirth. He scanned the surrounding for his master. He heard a soft tinkle from the dojo door way before he was attacked again.

Tezuka jumped and flipped to dodge the silver sword, bouncing of the wooden bars and columns. When the sword slashed diagonally across his face, he stepped back and held the tip of the blade flatly between his fore finger and thumb. With his other hand, he flicked the blade and it swung to another direction out of his master's grip.

"Hahaha!" His master laughed loudly. "You have successfully beaten my attack, young one."

Tezuka smiled and bowed to his master in greeting. "Not quite, master. I only evaded your attack."

The master nodded with a sense of satisfaction. "I heard you sneaked out again yesterday." His eyes twinkled with knowledge.

Instead of denying, Tezuka prided himself. "But I was good wasn't I? The guards didn't notice."

The master's eyebrow quirked up in amusement. "Of course. Now, why are you here?"

"I need an advice."

"Oh?" The master turned around and walked to the porch.

Tezuka joined to sit at the porch. "Mother wants me to get married, but I feel that I'm still too young for that. I don't know what to do." He lazily drew a circle on the sand with the heel of his shoe.

His master looked bedazzled at Tezuka. "You come to ask me on this matter, young one?"

Tezuka nodded. "There is no one else that I can confide in except you."

The old master pulled out a piece of cloth and used it to brandish his sword. "Hm." He examined the shine before setting the sword down. He sighed and relaxed. "Truthfully, I don't know what to tell you." He stopped a second to think. "Your parents were married around your age."

Tezuka frowned. "Only because they found each other. I have no one."

His master laughed good-naturedly. "That ought be easy. Go find someone."

"I'm now regretting coming to you." Tezuka crossed his arms and turned away with a huff.

"My apology young Prince. How about I make it up by telling you a story? There's this legend, a very old legend that I stumbled across in my younger years."

Tezuka listened tentatively, suddenly felt interested. "Do a lot of people know about it?"

The master's eyes lifted up and he pursed his lips. "Actually, it was an ancestral secret. If you are not a descendant, then the secret is unknown to you."

"Then how did you stumble across it?" The young Prince inquired with curiosity. "Surely you aren't a descendant of that ancestor."

"Of course not." The Master suddenly smiled that slowly morphed into a serious line. "Did you know that I once used to be an assassin before I came here?"

Tezuka blinked in surprise. "An assassin?" His master liked to joke with his wise words sometimes, but this didn't sound like a joke to him. "…Why are you telling me this?" Tezuka suddenly felt aware. Royals and assassins never belonged in the same place. They were like two opposing forces.

The Master sighed. "Because you are my apprentice. If we are going to converse on this level, then we need trust, does it not?"

Tezuka slowly nodded in comprehension. "Does Father know?"

"Yes." He began to reminisced the past. "I became an assassin because of my family provision. After I lost my family, I turned into a cold blooded assassin and worked for those who paid me well. Some years after, I received an order from my last client to assassinate the royal family, mainly your father."

"But you didn't kill father."

"Yes, I didn't kill him. I failed under your father's sword, but instead of killing me, he let me go."

"You didn't run away either."

"I came to realize that continuing my life as an assassin is worthless, so I offered to be your father's protector. He agreed and I became his protector until you were born. Since then, I became who I am today."

"Ah." Tezuka nodded in understanding. "Father made a wise decision." He gave his master a sincere smile. "I always think that the best people are those who are able turn their life around to become better people. They have been through the worse and realized what is right and wrong, so temptation won't be a problem to them."

The master didn't say anything.

"But master,"

"Hm?"

"You haven't gotten to the story yet."

"Oh, right." The master chuckled. "I can tell you the gist of it, but not the whole story because it is not my place to reveal such secrecy."

"I won't tell anyone." Tezuka promised.

"There once was a legend about 2 lovers who couldn't be together because of their difference in social status, but they sacrificed their lives to be together. One was a goddess and the other was a mortal. It was a taboo for two different races to fall in love because the gods did not dwell well on the idea of a halfling or of passing on heavenly power to those living on earth. It would disrupt the existence of the gods. In the end, they died because the goddess was sent to death and left a blood line on earth in the hands of her mortal husband. The blood line…has a unique feature." He simply put it.

Tezuka waited.

"It's called hermaphrodite. Do you know what that is, Kunimitsu?"

Tezuka shook his head. "What is it?"

"It's the ability of fertility in male descents."

"You mean…males can give birth?" Tezuka stuttered in surprise. He was the logic thinker, and hermaphrodite didn't sound logical to him.

"I'm telling you this because I trust you to keep it a secret. Anyways, if the King and Queen pre-arranged your loveless marriage, you should fight your way out, but first give the chosen girl a chance before you regret anything. I'm sure your parents will understand."

"Even if they're disappointed?" Even though Tezuka was rebellious, he was a filial son. He tried to compromise between his parents' happiness and his own when the issue collided. He didn't want to disappoint his parents in any ways if possible, but marriage was lifelong.

"Yes, they will learn to weigh out the importance of their own happiness and yours."

"Thank you, master." Tezuka silently thought over his master's words.

His master shuffled and picked up the forgotten sword.

Tezuka looked over. "Master."

"Yeah?" He stood up and walked into the dojo.

Tezuka followed. "The legend you told me just now, its true right?"

_Clonk!_ His master's fist descended on his head.

"!" Tezuka held his head in pain. "That hurts!"

"Its true!" His master said with a definite tone with an undertone of jest. "And you should never say that word to anyone else, understood?"

"Hermaphrodite?" Tezuka confirmed.

His master nodded and walked over to the sword stand to put the silver sword on it.

Inside, Tezuka still had doubt that a male can give birth, but he also believed in his master's words.

"There's a party tonight."

"I heard."

Tezuka fidgeted. "Its to find me a wife."

"Ah."

"Are you coming?"

"I am not." The master looked up at the small scroll on the wall painted with a mystical hue of blue in waves-like motion, a color that couldn't be found anywhere except that place a long time ago.

He sighed tiredly. _Those eyes._ He touched the scroll. _They're this color._ He remembered the blue in those eyes, the eyes of the _hermaphrodite_ that he saw.

**TBC**

AN: Feel free to point out any errors, so I can fix it and make it better. Thank you readers.** I normally send replies to reviews when I post the next chapter, so if you see it, that means the next chapter is up. ^^**

**Review Replies to Anonymous Reviewers:**

**tamcrutz - **Lolz, Mommy Fuji is the best, but his image in this story will be different from Miracle Love. You'll find out everntually. ^_^ Thank you!

**lovefuji - **Thank You, hope you will continue supporting this fic. ~HAppY!~


	3. Chapter 3

"We found them."

Leon's eyes glowed brightly in the dark room. _Finally, 16 long years as a mortal. _"Alert everyone."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Now laying on her bed with eyes wide open and mind clearly awake, Yumiko had been having an omnimous feeling that made every bone in her body tingle in nervousness. She lied still, focusing all her senses as her fingers ran up and down a dagger hidden beneath the blanket. Her breathing was light and she could hear her brother's soft breathing on the bed perpendicular to hers.

Unknown to Fuji, Yumiko had been training with Tetsuya to master her swordsmanship. Tetsuya was a skilled fighter orignally from a Kingdom faraway, but was in hiding due to a political uproar. They both knew about each other's stories and were willing to help the other out.

Fuji also knew about Tetsuya's background, so he secretly asked Tetsuya to teach him how to fight. Unfortunately, he wasn't compatible with swords and short-range attack. Tetsuya suggested using bow and arrows. He trained every day without Yumiko's knowledge and made his own bow and arrows using the stronger woods found in the forrest. Tetsuya helped him build the basic and he designed it to best fit his body and style. He begged Tetsuya to keep this from Yumiko because be didn't want Yumiko fixed on the idea that he wanted revenge. In truth, he merely wanted to protect his sister if their hide-out was discovered. However, even when Tetsuya promised, Yumiko found out anyways, but she didn't let him know that she knew. Nothing her brother did could escape her eyes and ears.

At that moment, an arrow lit in fire penetrated through the multiple layers of their home barrier to embed itself above her bed. Her eyes shot opened in alarm. "Syusuke!" She swung off the bed and jostled her brother awake. Fuji looked at her disorientedly.

"What?" He asked hazily and rubbed his eyes.

"They found us." She whispered urgently and desperately before moving across the room to gather their traveling essentials. She managed to dogde a dozen of similar arrows that joined the first one on the wall.

_Who?_ Half asleep, he couldn't grasp his sister's meaning right away.

"Leon."

Fuji sprang out of bed, now fully awake and properly hyperventilating as he reached below his bed to get his bow and quiver of arrows.

Fuji was about to run out of the room when he was held back by Yumiko. "Not that way. This way." She pointed to the window in their room. As she moved over to her bed to get out her katana, Fuji's eyes widened. "Nee-san. Since when?"

Yumiko merely smiled. "Before you." She walked over and held his shoulder. "We've been successful for 16 years, let's not make this the last." She gave him a squeeze that he could feel fear from it. "The moment we get out, you run. Do you understand?"

Fuji looked at her in protest. "No. I will stay and fight with you. I can fight." Even though his voice was firm, his eyes wavered. She could see it in the blue orbs.

She smiled. That color...that color was everything to her, her family, the lineage, everything. She caressed his cheek. "I know you can, but you won't. Now it's not the time for you to fight. This time, you run. My order for you, as the first born, is to run." She held his gaze, pinning him so hard that he couldn't utter a sound except staring at her in bedazzlement, not understand the reason for her to say that.

"Nee-san..." He protested.

Yumiko leaned forward to place a gentle kiss on his forhead. "Please listen to me this once." She pleaded with urgency. "You need find Yuuta, and I need you to be alive to do this."

_Yuuta! _

"We." He hurriedly corrected her only to be silenced by her finger.

"No. _You_ need to stay alive."

He still couldn't understand why Yumiko was making this a suicide mission for herself. They would have a higher chance of escaping together if they stayed together. Nevertheless, her last message got through to him. Why? He would have to find that out later. He nodded with great reluctance. "I won't disappoint you."

Yumiko nodded and bother leapt out of the house through the small window. Like he had promised his sister, he ran while Yumiko held back the enemy. But with only her strength, she couldn't hold everyone back. She could only hope for one thing.

_Syusuke, please stay alive._

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

He didn't know where he was going. Running through the forest, dodging trees and jumping over obstacles, he went downhill. It was the only place to go: civilization. He thought he was going the right way until he ran to a dead-end, a cliff hanging above and raging river. He was glad that he stopped in time before falling over. He turned and was about to go back into the forest, but the enemy had already caught up.

He only had two options: jump or get killed. There was no time to make a decision as Leon's men charged towards him. He jumped, turning face towards the sky. He didn't think they were persistent enough to follow him down the latitude, but they did. He grabbed 3 arrows at a time, strung and released.

He let out a smile before hitting the water.

_Bull's eyes._

A couple of bodies splashed into the river following Fuji's body.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Yumiko's strength was depleting fast after she took a couple of hits. She wished it not to end this soon...Before blacking out, a familiar figured stepped in and took her body and fled the scene.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"He's still alive. Dispatch parties and search every foot of the banks and river end." Leon roared. He was angry, frustrated, pissed. He had the Aphrodite's heirs so close, but he let both of them slipped out of his fingers.

"Yes. Leon-sama."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The banquet was going everything as planned. Eligible daughters of every household of their kingdom were present in different arrays of color. Their beautiful evening gowns brought magnificient ambience to the hall, very lively and very fresh.

Queen Ayana was pleased with the attendance of the invited guests tonight, but more so with the unyielding presence of her son standing by her side on the mezzanine. "My son." She called out to get his attention.

He turned to her with questioning eyes. She could see boredom reflected in them.

She felt bad that he was bored, but nonetheless happy that he stayed. Truthfully, she had expected him to sneak out before the banquet was over. "You should go and mingle. Do you not find interest in a single maiden?"

Tezuka sighed and headed to the staircase. The Queen followed him. "Everyone is suitable and beautiful."

He got to agree. Indeed. But none caught his eyes because none was special. They were all alike. There was nothing peculiar about one or the other that he found interesting.

"Mother. You like everything and everyone." He mumbled.

She slightly frown. "What's wrong?" Did she hear agitation in his voice?

"Nothing. Just bored."

She nodded, acquiescing to his feeling at the moment. "Do know that I only have your best interest in everything I do."

He stopped and turned to face her. "I know. I don't blame you or anyone, so don't think too much about it. I'm just...difficult."

She nodded. "Alright." Just then, a group of countess came towards them. "Go on. Enjoy the rest of the evening."

He nodded and descended the staircase. Oishi was the first to approach him along with their known group of friends.

"So?" Oishi prodded with a wide smile.

Tezuka scoffed, couldn't believe that was what they wanted to talk about. "So what?" He started walking in the direction of the garden.

Oishi released an exasperated sigh. "After dancing with more than a hundred maidens, you're telling me that no one caught your eyes? I'm starting to feel the sorrow His and Her Majesty go through just to find a future Queen for you."

Tezuka walked on as Oishi dismissed their friends before following the prince outside towards the garden.

He took in a deep breath of fresh air before looking around to see his Father and some of the Counts standing by the Koi pond. He changed his direction and headed to a more secluded area.

"How much longer will this lasts?" Tezuka mumbled as he looked up into the sky at the moon. It shown brightly among the smaller stars, and its presence made him feel at ease.

"Your Highness."

If Tezuka was startled, he didn't show it.

Inui Sadaharu walked out from behind a trail. He was their Kingdom's tactician along with Count Inui, his father.

Tezuka nodded to show his acknowledgment of the tactician's presence.

"The moon is brightest and fullest at its best tonight." Inui analyzed as he stood behind mimicking what Tezuka was doing before he made his presence made.

Tezuka tilted his head back to look at Inui before staring back up at the sky.

Bringing his fingers up, Inui calculated nights of past full moons, its distance away from earth as shown by its size, and its surrounding stars. "Something big is happening tonight, if I'm correct in all my calculation and sixth sense."

Tezuka frowned, scrunching up his forehead. "You mean my future consort will be chosen tonight?"

Inui shook his head. "My analytical guess cannot give you specific results."

"I can give a better answer." A new voice said, softer and more feminine.

Both turned around to see two newcomers. They were none others than Yukimura Seichi, the Royal dream seer and cousin to Tezuka, and his protector Sanada Genichirou, second-in-command to the Head Royal Guard, Shiraishi Kuranosuke, who was Tezuka's appointed protector.

They both bowed their heads to Tezuka and received an acknowledgment nod from Tezuka.

Inui, in turn, showed respect to Yukimura. "Milord."

"No, your future consort will not be chosen, but yes you will meet the bearer of your first born tonight." Yukimura continued.

"Are you certain? I've yet to show interest in anyone tonight." Tezuka responded to Yukimura's earlier response.

Yukimura merely smiled serenely. "It is difficult to provide an uncontentious analysis of certainty. The vision in my dream is not of certainty, but of possibilities. What you decide yesterday, today, or tomorrow is the most important factor in changing what I see indefinitely."

_My decicion, huh?_ Tezuka thought. Without a word, Tezuka walked away abruptly, only stopped short when Oishi, who had been standing by watching and listening, yelled out.

"Where are you going?"

Tezuka turned to Inui. "You said the moon is biggest tonight?"

"Yes." Inui responded undeterred.

Then, Tezuka turned to Oishi. "I wish to see the moon at a better height." It was partly true. He wanted to see what would become of his future marriage if he were not there for the selection tonight.

Oishi gasped, almost terrified. "Please don't tell me you're going to the peak just for this reasoning." In which, Tezuka responded with a challenging silence.

Inui and Yukimura smiled in amusement, as they half expected this. Sanada showed a tiny concern with the widening of his eyes.

"That's absurd!" Oishi almost shriek in horror. "It's too dangerous at this time in the night, worst yet, in the forest! You can't be serious."

Tezuka frowned in disapproval, making Oishi shrunk back in fear that he overstepped the friend barrier. "Seriousness is my virtue. But more importantly, it would be a waste to pass on this opportunity. When will this come again?"

"Possibly a century or so." Inui readily said.

Tezuka passed a look onto Oishi to make the point. In which, Oishi could only sigh. "Fine. I'm coming with you."

At this, Tezuka smiled and shook his head. "My order for you is to stay and be my witness lest anyone looks for me."

Oishi look offended. "Inui can be your witness."

"I'm not the one seen walking out here with the Prince." Inui smirked as Oishi's face turned hopeless.

"But you need a body guard!" Oishi wailed.

Tezuka scoffed inwardly. Externally, he raised an eyebrow at Oishi.

Immediately, Oishi came to a realization for that reaction. He became embarassed. "It's not like I don't know you're stronger and more skillful than I am..." He trailed off.

Tezuka took this moment to disappear.

"Oishi-kun, it seems like your charge has already left." Yukimura offered, pitying Oishi for having to put up with Tezuka's mischievousness.

Oishi became frantic and bugged Inui why the tactician didn't notify him sooner. At last, he sighed and let it be.

"Well, it is getting rather late, don't you think so Sanada?" Yumiko said airily and Sanada understood what would go after that.

"We should return soon." Sanada supplied.

Inui and Oishi inclined their head and sent Yukimura off with an evening blessing.

After passing through his quarter, Tezuka equipped himself with a hooded cloak and his long sword. Like the night breeze, he left the palace on horseback unoticed. It wasn't a long ride until he reached the border of the forest. He got off and instructed his stallion to stay put, but hidden until he came back.

He didn't need a horse to go up the peak. It was unnecessary and foolish. He swiftly moved through the trees and shrubs. Not long after, he was standing on the peak looking down at the dark raging water beneath. It was cold, but that didn't affect him. He felt like the moon was just an arm length away as he stood there. It was so big and so bright that he wondered if it would be possible for anyone to reach the moon. It would be a great adventure. He stayed there for a long moment before deciding to take a walk down the bank of the river. At the end where the river stopped flowing and its calmest, he found a rock to perch on as he laid back and closed his eyes.

There was no one besides the sound of circadas singing, frogs croaking, wolves and owls howling, and water flowing. They were all so peaceful

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The water was cold and the current was rough. Fuji didn't know if he had lost consciousness and was in a dream-like state or half conscious flowing down the river. He felt lifeless, no more energy left.

Not aware, he was heading down a waterfall, quick. As he took the fall, he saw a fuzzy image of a young woman with the most beautiful flowing hair he had ever seen. _Mom?_ She looked like her.

_Syusuke. _A soft voice echoed in his head like a sutra. _Don't die. You must stay alive..._

" .alive..." Fuji mumbled before his body was washed over the waterfall and fell unconscious.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tezuka was woken up by a strange sound far from nature. He fell asleep, unnoticed. His grip tightened on the weapon as he slowly stood up and looked around. He didn't see or sense any movement besides the earlier noise. Then, something shined in the water, partially hidden behind a large rock.

_A human? _Tezuka thought.

Without a second thought, he ran over. He couldn't tell if the person before him was a female or male. Nevertheless, he crouched down to pick up the person, not caring if his clothes became wet and dripping, and laid said person on dry land. He listened and observed for any signs of life. Luckily, the person was breathing, but very softly and slowly. He began to shake the person, but no matter how hard, the person didn't come to. As he pulled the body out of the water, the moonlight reflected something shiny on his palms and at various parts of the person. It was then that he realized the person was bleeding at various places.

He looked around, wondering if there were other people who in case might be looking for the person at that moment. For a short while, he couldn't hear any movement or noise of a search party. _No matter what, medical attention is most important right now._ He decided, picking up the body and ran into back into the forest.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Leon gritted his teeth as he picked up Fuji's wooden bow. _He should be nearby…_He thought.

"Leon-sama!"

Leon looked up to the general.

"Come look." Leon walked over and the general pointed to a pair of footsteps printed on the wet earth. "Looks like someone else was here. He couldn't possibly be in a good condition after that fall." The footprints were firmly printed. There was no sign of trudging.

"Continue searching." Leon ordered, snapping the bow in half as he roared at his army. _So close…_

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

A distance into the forest, Tezuka noticed they were pursued by an aggressive party from the urgency of their speed, their number, and their silence. Normally, friends would call out names. He ran over a small ledge only to stop short before hiding the body and himself under the small ledge. He hugged the body tight and stayed still. He wasn't sure if the party was friend or foe, but this was the best option to keep the person safe.

Noises from the searching party were not subtle. Tezuka could distinguish their location and how many there were. He almost gasped when a few pairs of footsteps stopped on top of the ledge.

"How are we supposed to search when there isn't a single trace of them?" A voice asked.

"Lift up every single rock if you have to. They couldn't possibly leave the forest yet." Another voice with more authority replied. "Leon-sama wouldn't be happy if we come back empty handed again." After a moment of silence, the same authoritative voice spoke up. "Is his sister still alive?"

"She got away. A man showed up at the last minute and rescued her."

"Damn. It's going to be harder to lure him out without a hostage."

_So, this person is a he. _Tezuka thought. _And he's being pursued. _He was glad that he made a wise decision to hide.

The overheard conversation gave him a better inkling of what was happening. Even though he didn't know who he had rescued, saving a life was more important than finding out who the person was. He lied there for a long while before rolling out to check for movements from the search party. It looked like they had moved to another part of the forest. Gently, he pulled the person out and resumed on his track.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Oishi sighed, glad that the ball was over without chaos. After the prince left, he couldn't stay calm, fearing that the Queen would look for her son only to figure out her son was missing. And apparently, he would be brought to questioning since many people saw him left the hall with the prince. It was an unnerving situation for him.

Fortunately, the ball ended well. The Queen didn't summon her son at the end. For that, he was grateful.

It was late in the night now that he had returned to his home. He was about to change into his sleep clothes when he saw a shadow moving outside of his room. _An intruder?_ He cautiously moved across the room to get his sword.

Before anything else happened, a black shadow flew in through his window and landed on the floor heavily.

"Your highness!" Oishi gasped, partly stunned (because Tezuka looked like he'd been digging wells, tired and dirty looking) and partly confused, as he saw an unconscious figure in Tezuka's arms. He was more mortified at the sight of blood not only on the unconscious person but also on Tezuka. "Are you hurt?!"

Tezuka shook in negative before shushing him and walked over to his bed to put down the figure. He came near them and peered down on his bed. "Who's she?"

Tezuka glanced at him. "He. And I don't know."

Oishi looked taken back. "Are you sure? How do you know that?"

Tezuka shrugged. "Bring over your clothes. We need to change him out of his wet clothes."

Oishi nodded and ran over to his closet and pulled out a new pair of clothes and a towel. "Here." He put them on the bed. "I'll go get the first aid kit."

Tezuka nodded, focusing his attention back on the person on the bed as Oishi left the room. He picked up the towel and blotted the small face gently and dried the wet hair. There were small cuts on pale cheeks and a gash not too big on the forehead to the side. He blotched the blood.

It seemed like time slowed down at an incredibly slow pace as he closely examined the now slightly flushed face that seemed to be affected by the room's warm temperature. Even through the dirt and blood, he could clearly see the small delicate nose, high cheekbones, thin pink lips, perfectly shaped eyebrows, and long lashes that mesmerized him. _How can a man be possess such features that surpass all females?_ This piqued his curiosity. He dared to let his fingers trace the jawline.

The person suddenly shivered, making him pull away quickly as if his fingers were burnt after realizing what he was doing. _What is wrong with you?_ He mentally berated himself for losing control. _I shouldn't be acting like this._ He shook to clear his head before taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry." He murmured, feeling like a trespasser for taking the person's clothes off.

When Oishi came back, Tezuka was done. He took the kit from Oishi and bandaged up the wounds.

Oishi felt out of place because Tezuka was doing everything, so he decided to question. "Where and how did you find him?"

"Mogami River. He was unconscious on the river bank."

"You didn't see anyone else?"

Tezuka shook his head, deciding that it was best not to tell Oishi about the pursuers lest his friend freaked out and became paranoid. "Your place is closest and I trust you to care for him until he wakes up."

Oishi nodded. "What happened? Should I be concern about his condition?"

"I think he's fine for now, so don't summon a healer, and no one should know about this." He pinned Oishi with seriousness. "Notify me as soon as he's awake. I'll come whenever I can."

Oishi could only nod to all of Tezuka's instructions. He slept on the chair that night. If the Prince said not to disclose this person to anyone, there must be something about this stranger. He was curious, but he could wait. After all, patience was virtue.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

His body felt heavy and he felt like goo, unable to summon enough strength to do anything. His eyes fluttered open weakly. Blurred vision greeted him. _Where am I?_ It took all of his energy to just lift his hand over his eyes, rubbing them to clear his vision.

He was in a house, for sure, and in a fancy room no less. His eyes went around the room before they settled on a pile of clothing that looked awfully familliar. There was a gap of silence before his eyes flew wide open, blue orbs scintillating, and he sat up quickly to fling the cover off his body in one movement. _Whose clothes am I wearing?_ The material was made out of fine silk, not something Tetsuya would wear if it was Tetsuya that saved him.

All this new information made him confused and slightly disoriented as his head was throbbing. When he reached for his temples, he noticed that there was a bandage wrapped around his head. It hurt when he put pressure on it. He hissed and wondered if he hit a rock from the fall.

_The fall!_ He suddenly realized the situation he was in. _Nee-san! Oh please no. _His headache and weakness forgotten when he got up from the the bed only to remember them after his feet gave out and he hit the floor with a loud thud. He let out a wail of distress. _I've to find nee-san._

He used the bed as leverage to push himself up and stabilize his feet. He stood still for quite a while before he was sure that he had enough strength to leave this place to look for Yumiko. The sound of a cock's crow got him startled. That was the sound at the break of dawn. That means people were starting to get up, and that means that he had to get out of this place now. He looked around the room for any form on weapon and found his dagger in one of the drawers. He tucked it in his boots and bolt out of the room. He hoped he wouldn't be caught because he had no idea where he was at or how to get out.

What he didn't expect to be happening so soon was running into someone the moment he ran out of the door.

He fell backward with an oof and lost his balance, readying himself to hit the hard floor again.

However, he felt his arm being pulled and he was propelled forward.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.- TBC -.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

**AN**: Wala! An update that feels like a pilot chapter since I've been so inactive and propably lost my creative writing skills. Nevertheless, I did it. Now which story needs an update next? Hmmm...

Special Thanks to **reinbowbox, Jerui, lil'sayuri-chan, yume229, LostinMind93, OrdinaryKyuu, yuulovesme, YaoiFanaticFreak, azab, lemon-and-chai2B, Yukairi, tamcrutz, and lovefuji **for taking the time to review.


	4. Chapter 4

Fuji sucked in a breath before slowly looking up to see narrow brown eyes staring down at him. He watched the eyes constricted and a frown appeared to enhance the strict feature that was already evident on his face. The hand gripping him suddenly tightened and he winced, whimpering softly and he tried to pull away with great effort but to no prevail.

"Sanada-san!"

Fuji's head turned side way to the voice of a newcomer. As the man that was holding him loosened the grip as he turned side way, Fuji quickly pulled away and held his bruised arm to his chest.

"Oishi-san." The man, now Fuji knew to be Sanada, replied in a deep, low voice.

And the other one, Fuji noticed, had quite a strange hair style that reminded him of a cute cockroach from the front. He blinked as the man named Oishi ran over and stood right in front of him. "What are you doing out here? When did you wake up? Are you hurt anywhere? You shouldn't be out here! You're not fully recovered yet. Let's get you back inside."

Oishi's incessant fret over him made him confused. The man looked nice while Sanada looked the opposite. Did they know the ones who pursued him?

Who were there people and where was he?

The, a soft chuckle came from behind Sanada, reminding him the sound of the soft wind charms Tetsuya used to make to hang around their home. A person, smaller and much frailer looking than Sanada stepped out to stand in front, but to the side of Sanada.

This person had the bluest hair he had ever seen and a gentle smile that made him feel nostalgic of his sister. But that wasn't what made him stood out from Sanada and Oishi, it was the way the held himself, back straight and relaxed. Eyes sharp, yet soft with mirth. There was no weapon visible on him like how Sanada had a long sword in one hand while Oishi had something similar across his back.

"How many times have I told you to smile when you meet new people? You're scaring him." The chastisement was directed at Sanada, who bowed with much annoyance thrown at Fuji.

"My apology." Sanada said without conviction and distantly, as if he wasn't sorry at all.

The blunette laughed again. "I was teasing you. Don't take it too seriously."

When Sanada looked up, now with a bland expression instead of a glare that he initially gave Fuji, his gaze turned and landed on Fuji. "I'm Yukimura Seiichi, and who might you be?"

Fuji darted confused looks between Oishi and Yukimura. Names meant nothing if he didn't know who they actually _were_, and it wouldn't be smart to reveal who he was to people who he didn't know.

It took Oishi a while, but he finally understood that Fuji most highly did not harbor any trust for him to reveal his identity.

Oishi cleared his throat and took it upon himself to make the introduction. "Lord Yukimura is the nephew of His Majesty, King Tezuka. Sanada-san is Lieutenant General, second-in-command of the Royal Guard as well as Lord Yukimura's appointed protector. And I'm Oishi, bodyguard to the His Highness, Prince Tezuka."

At Fuji's continual silence, Oishi began to think that Fuji might be mute since he hadn't heard a word from Fuji's mouth yet.

"It seems like we've unintentionally frightened you." Yukimura said, eyes softened in empathy.

When Fuji looked into the Lord's eyes, he could see wisdom. For some reasons, those eyes made him feel bare, like there wasn't anything he could hide, making him more afraid to speak up and reluctant about telling a lie of who he was.

Oishi tentatively put a hand on Fuji's shoulder and smiled. "I think you've had enough for now. Let's get you back inside." Without waiting for a reply from Fuji, he steered the smaller one into the room, mindful of Yukimura's eyes following him. As expected, Yukimura was still outside after he tucked Fuji back into bed. That could only mean one thing.

Yukimura walked away from the door and beckoned the other two to follow. His eyes were no longer soft, but serious. "Who is he?"

Oishi's heart was thumping anxiously as he mulled over his response. Tezuka did say not to let anyone know about the stranger, but Yukimura just so happened to walk by right when the stranger decided to flee, or so Oishi thought. It wasn't his fault, right? To say or not to say the truth? _Well, it's not like Lord Yukimura can tell if I'm lying, even though he gave off the impression that he could…a dream seer doesn't have that kind of ability…right? Oh screw it! _ "I found him unconscious at the front."

Yukimura stopped suddenly on his track, but didn't turn around. "_You_ found him?" The emphasis caught Oishi like a deer in a head light.

Oishi gulped inwardly. "Yes, my Lord." Thankfully, he didn't stutter.

"Then make sure he's to recover in full health. I would hate to see him leaving your home in that state." Yukimura's head turned slightly towards the side where Sanada stood. "Come. We are due to be back. And no need to send us off, Oishi."

Oishi inclined his head, only looking up when Yukimura was out of sight. "Whew!" He let out a sigh that he didn't know he was holding. Turning on his heels, he went back to his private quarter to see Fuji sitting on the edge of the bed with legs dangling on the side and face seemed to be far off and deep in thoughts.

Oishi cleared his throat to make his appearance known, noticing how Fuji flinch and immediately stood up and backed away. He held out his hands in peace. "You don't need to be afraid. I'm not going to hurt you."

But that didn't convince the stranger at all, so Oishi stood fixed on the spot in the middle of the room. "I promise I won't do anything to frighten you. I'm just going to stand right here and talk, is that okay?"

It took a while to receive a response, a nod of the head, but Oishi was patient. He smiled, happy that he got at least a response. "My young master found you by the Mogami River. Do you remember where that is?"

Fuji frowned. _Mogami? _He didn't know names of any natural name marks. The mountain was his home. There were too many rivers.

"It's a large river that runs deep in the woods."

_Ah. _He remembered jumping down a cliff into a torrent river, but lost consciousness soon after, so he didn't know where he ended up.

"He brought you here and told me to take care of you. It's been 3 days."

"3 days?" Fuji murmured softly, meaning to speak to himself.

But Oishi heard it. He smiled. "Ah! So you can talk." The way Fuji flinched made Oishi realized that he might have surprised the stranger with his loud voice. "Gomen, I didn't mean to surprise you."

Fuji refused to speak again after that, so Oishi took over and did what he thought would make his guest comfortable, like bringing in food and drink. Over the course of the day, he managed to send a messenger to Tezuka about the awakening of a certain someone.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Sanada tapped his horse to come trot in parallel of Yukimura. "Don't you think it strange?" He remarked.

Yukimura flashed Sanada a clueless smile. "Hmm?"

The lieutenant general sighed, only to generate a soft giggle from his charge. "My, loosen up that demeanor that precedes your reputation while you're with me, won't you?"

Sanada glared, but Yukimura knew it meant nothing. "…"

"Then, what are you referring to as strange?"

"The fact that Oishi was trying to hide that person, or getting him away from us, at least that's how I saw it."

"It's not just us, Gen. I doubt anyone in Oishi's household knew about his presence at all."

"Who could he be to make Oishi act in a suspicious manner?"

Yukimura laughed suddenly, catching Sanada a bit off guard. "Why are you laughing?" He scowled.

"You can be so cute when you're curious and confused." Yukimura stopped his horse and tilted his head to look over to Sanada, who also stopped but was glaring back. "Come here." He beckoned Sanada over. The horses stood side by side, touching. Yukimura leaned over and ghost a hand over Sanada's right cheek before placing a kiss on the other cheek.

The sun made the heat that was rising to Sanada's face worst. He jerked away, feeling embarrassed as his eyes darted around. "We're in public's eyes." He chastised in a whisper.

"But there are no public's eyes at this moment."

At the corner of his eyes, Sanada saw Yukimura putting on the horse reign and climbed over to his horse to sit right in front, making them face each other. His long yet thin arms came to circle around Sanada's neck. "My Lord! This is inappropriate!" Sanada gritted out in between his teeth, but Yukimura was not at all affected.

The Lord pouted and traced a finger on Sanada's throat. "Hardly, considering the position we managed in our little activity last night. Besides…" He looked up coyly and winked. "It's Seiichi, not My Lord."

Sanada blushed harder and felt dizzy from the heat rushing to his head.

"There's no need to act like a virgin. We're past that stage long ago." Yukimura smiled and leaned into Sanada' chest, taking in a swift of the taller's scent. "It was uncomfortable on horseback with my compromise _backside_. Would you deny me to ride with you?"

Sanada knew at that moment that he could never win or deny his secret lover of anything. Subjecting to his charge's determination, he steered the horse towards a desolate detour.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Tezuka left the palace as soon as he received the message. Now standing in Oishi's room, and once again looming over the sleeping stranger.

"He just went back to sleep after dinner." Oishi offered.

There was a moment of silence when Tezuka took notice of Oishi's unusual fidgeting self. "What's the matter?"

Oishi looked apologetic before spilling out the encounter earlier on. "Lord Yukimura and Lieutenant General Sanada came over today. He ran into them."

Tezuka's eyes widened and he gave Oishi full attention. "What did you tell them?"

Oishi felt weak every time he was subjected to Tezuka's infamous glare. "I lied and said I was the one that found him."

"They believed it?"

"I don't know…they might?" Oishi bit his lips, nervous about being unsure.

"Don't worry about it." Tezuka decided. Yukimura was as carefree of other people's business as he was of court matter. He lowered down and sat on the bed, by the figure's side. His right hand moved and hovered over Fuji's face, brushing away strands of hair from his forehead. _His fever went down._

Fuji had run a high fever the night before, but under Oishi's watch, he was able to get better faster than expected.

Tezuka stood and silently beckoned Oishi to follow as both headed out of the room.

"Were you able to find out anything about him?"

Oishi sighed, rubbing his nape as he followed Tezuka halfway across the courtyard to the cherry blossom tree. "He refused to talk no matter how much I tried to assure him that he's safe and we're not the bad guys. A strange person though. It seemed as if he was afraid that something was going to happen to him, seeing how guarded even after spending almost the whole day with him doing nothing but talk, well, mostly one-sided on my part."

"He didn't give you his name, at least?" Tezuka's eyes flickered to the moon on the night sky. It was bright, just like the night he found the fallen angel. He smiled to himself at the thought of referring the stranger as such.

Oishi shook his head. "I only heard two words from him."

At this, Tezuka turned his gaze on Oishi, silently questioning his bodyguard 'what two words?'

"3 days."

_3 days?_ Tezuka thought back to that night and recollected the conversation that he heard in the forest. _He must be anxious to find his sister. But if he's anxious, then…._ His eyes widened before a thought fell on him and without any warning, he ran back to Oishi's room.

Oishi was confused, bewildered. "Tezuka-sama?" He shouted and turned to run after his charge.

The door to Oishi's room burst opened, rattling the shelves lining the wall.

The bed was empty and the window was opened, leaving the curtains to flutter as the wind passed by.

"What?" Oishi ran over to the bed to make sure that the body was indeed missing while Tezuka stood frozen in his spot. "He was here just now sleeping!" He flipped the covers madly.

Tezuka's eyes narrowed. "He couldn't have gotten far. Find him!"

The moment the order was thrown at Oishi, Tezuka was gone.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Ah!"

Fuji felled to the ground, scraping his elbows and knees as he tripped over uneven pavement. It wasn't easy to move so quickly in his state, but he had to escape at the opportune moment after the two men left him in the room alone. All he knew was that he had to get out and find his sister.

He got up and let his gaze lingered shortly at the house that he ran away from. "Thank you." The words were left to be carried by the wind as he disappeared into the night.

How long he had been running, he wasn't sure. It was alleys after alleys, streets after streets. It was then that he realized he had not a clue about where he was or which direction he should take. _Where am I?_

It was late, but there were still a few people scattering about. He reached out and stopped a passerby. "Pardon me."

An elderly woman looked up from under her hooded cloak. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry to take up your time, but could you tell me where this is?" Fuji asked.

The woman nodded with a smile. "Of course. You're in the capitol city of the Alabaster Kingdom."

_Alabaster Kingdom? _Fuji's eyes widened in surprise, which he immediately realized that it was a mistake.

The woman's eyes froze. "Your eyes are blue." She reached up a small hand to caress his cheek. "I've never seen anything like."

Fuji pulled away, eyes now closed. "You're mistaken. They're gray."

"No. They are too clear and bright to be gray."

Fuji's breath hitched. "I'm sorry. I have to go."

"Wait!" The woman called out, but Fuji was already gone. She blinked. "They are blue."

_Oh no! Nee-san told me not to show them to anyone! And the capitol city of Alabaster Kingdom? _He had heard stories from the villagers. It was a place full of arogant and cunning aristocrats that took pleasure in taking advantage of the poor people and cheat them of wealth. He didn't want to be here and this place sounded like a far distance away from the village.

As he was panicking, he didn't look where he was going and ran into someone. Though this time, there was no hand to stop his fall.

A second of silence ensued as Fuji hissed in pain.

"Well well well. Look what we have here."

"Heh! Just our luck."

The two voices made him froze just a second before two men crouched down to his position on the ground and jutted their faces towards him, invading his personal space.

On instinct, Fuji shoved the faces away and made a run when one of the men that were reeking of alcohol fell on his butt.

"You wench!"

Fuji heard before he felt himself being grabbed by hand at his arm. A strong force tugged him from moving forward and spun him around to see the same men with smirks on their faces.

"Think you could run away after what you did?"

Fuji's face scrunched up into a frown before delivering a punch the man's face. He watched the man fall before the man's friend turned to him.

The friend made a move to hit him, but he dodged and kicked the man in the stomach, making the man to stumble back a few steps and cough.

"Don't touch me with your dirty hands." Fuji growled at them at the same time their faces twisted angrily.

One of them scoffed. "Who do you think you are wench? Who touched who first eh?" He spit saliva mixed with blood, a result from Fuji's blow to his face, on the ground. "Think throwing a few hits is gonna scare us?"

Fuji looked at them in disgust, mindful of how he was being circled now.

"Looks like we're gonna have to put up a good fight for a good lay."

The man behind him laughed mockingly. "You've never been so right!"

Fuji seethed. "Go find someone else to entertain you." Truthfully, he was scared, but he tried not to show it. At the same time, he was beyond angry.

The men smirked. "Why? We already found someone."

Fuji only had a fraction of a second to react to the man's attack from behind. He was able to dodge it but not slap that came from the other man. His face snapped to the side, momentarily made him feel a little dizzy on impact.

When he looked back up, another slap was coming his way…

…but it never came. The next thing he saw was the man flying backward, tumbling down the street and the other man's face paled at whoever that was standing behind him.

"Get lost." A deep, yet familiar voice came from over his shoulders.

The man that was still standing took off with his friend's unconscious body took off in a blink.

For some reasons, his heart thumped loudly and widely. It wasn't because of what he saw, but because of what he heard. The voice gave him a strange feeling of overwhelming. At the feeling of a hand on his shoulder, he jerked away and turned around to see a tall, broad young man with eyes sharp as a blade behind the glasses he wore.

The young man didn't move as he spoke. "Are you hurt?"

Fuji was sure he heard this voice before, but where? His hand came up to ghost over his cheek that became tender from the slap. He gingerly ran his fingers along his jaw to make sure that it wasn't bleeding. When he was sure that it wasn't, he dropped his hand to his side and returned a pointed gaze at the young man. "Who are you?"

The young man suddenly smiled, albeit a faint one, taking Fuji by suprise at how much charismatic that made the man looked. "Call me Kunimitsu."

A blush appeared on Fuji's face uncontrollably. "Um." He made an attempt to clear his throat but failed and it turned into a sound resembling a puppy sneezing. "Thank you, Kunimitsu-san, for helping me. Pardon my nuisance, but could you direct me to the Mogami River?"

"It's a long way from here."

Fuji shook his head and interjected quickly with strong reassurance. "It's not a problem. I just have to get there as soon as possible." He watched Kunimitsu standing still and quietly before the man regarded him in seriousness.

"It's dark, why don't you wait until sunrise?" The tone came out stricter and more finalized than Kunimitsu intended to let out.

"I've wasted enough time waiting." Fuji said solemnly, mind on his sister's safety and whereabout. "If I don't go now..."

"1 more night...is not going to make a difference."

Fuji looked at Kunimitsu squarely in his eyes. There was something in Kunimitsu's voice that made him think that Kunimitsu knew something. "What do you mean by that?"

They engaged in a silent moment of staring as Kunimitsu was reluctant to answer the prior question.

"You found him!"

A loud voice that Fuji recognized that belonged to Oishi came from behind, and he instantaneously froze, wincing internally at having been caught from someone who he was trying to run away from. His frown persisted on his face as Oishi ran over to stand in front of him, looking at him up and down before letting out a gasp.

"Oh no! You're hurt. What happened? Why is the left side of your face red and swollen? Are you hurt any where else on your body? Should we bring you to a healer?"

One thing that Fuji picked up from this man in the short time they knew each other was that he was a worrywort and had tons of questions that spilled out faster than leaking water. The strings of questions made him weary.

When Fuji refused to speak, Oishi turned around and regarded Kunimitsu with a questioning gaze that had a mix of worry. "Te-"

"He ran into some drunkards." Kunimitsu cut Oishi off rather fiercely, leaving no room for argument and stunned Oishi with a pinning gaze that seemed to order him to keep his silence.

Oishi slowly turned around, back to facing Fuji. "Let's go back to my house so that I can get you some ice for the swelling." He suggested eagerly.

Fuji sighed internally, not at all intending to go back to the place that he escaped from. He wondered what identity these two people had. To chase after a stranger, there must be a reason for them to do so and he could only hope they wouldn't make him indebted to them for saving him not once but twice. His suspicion sustained. One look at Kunimitsu, he nodded, now suddenly feel more burdened.

Oishi instantly brightened up and they walked back to his house.

After settling back on the bed in Oishi's private quarter, Oishi left to retrieve an ice pack, leaving him and Kunimitsu alone.

"Won't you tell me your name?" Kunimitsu asked from his spot on the other side of the room, sitting at Oishi's study desk.

Fuji stared blankly at the question before returning the question with another of his own. "Who are you really?"

Kunimitsu raised an eyebrow in challenge and leaned back. "Why do you want to know?"

Fuji's frown deepened before turning his gaze away and out the window, stubbornly refused to answer any more questions for the night. _Because I have the right to know!_

That was how Oishi saw the two when he returned. There was a still silence, yet it wasn't exactly uncomfortable or awkward. He walked over to the bed and gave Fuji the ice pack, who took it readily.

Oishi flicked his eyes to Kunimitsu to see the man standing up.

"I hope to see _you _tomorrow." Kunimitsu pinned a glare at Fuji, expecting the latter to get his message, which he assumed that Fuji did with a stiffening of the shoulders. "Good night." Without waiting for a reply he left the room with Oishi following and closing the door behind them.

Once they were outside of the room, Tezuka spoke. "From now on, refrain from addressing me by my name and title in front of him. I do not wish for him to know of who I am."

Oishi was confused by the decision but complied nonetheless. "I understand. Will young master do?"

Tezuka nodded. "I'll be back before noon."

Oishi bowed and saw Tezuka off. He sighed once he was alone, rubbing his nape as he stared at the door to his private quarter. "How did a bodyguard like me end up as a caretaker for a stranger? And gotten kicked out of my own room in the process?" He shook his head and let out a long heavy sigh. "And how is the only royal heir of this Kingdom so playful and carefree and doesn't have a smidgen of interest in matters of state?" He asked himself in bewilderment and went to retire for the night in a nearby guest quarter.

**TBC**

**AN: **'Kunimitsu' is used to depict Fuji's obliviousness to Tezuka's identity.

Thank you for all of your reviews and love for this story! I was going to end with a cliff hanger, but thought it would be mean since update is dawdling...hope you all enjoyed this chapter though.

On last note, I want to especially thank **I Love Fuji** for drawing and sharing her spectacular fanart of the TeFu couple in setting of this story. It's lovely! If interested, please visit her blog for the picture in reference of AL.

_Supremekikay24: Thank you! Updated!_  
_Reinbowbox: No Yumiko yet...maybe next chapter?_  
_Yukairi: Hahha sorry for the cliff hanger, that's why I refrain from ending it that way in this chapter. Thank you!_  
_I Love Fuji: Aw~ Thank you! "huggle" you back_  
_Fujiyuki: Thank you! Yes, I'm not abandoning this story. So rest assure. I'll try to update more often if possible._  
_Wara ningyo: You're certainly welcome. hope you enjoy this chapter as well?_  
_Devi no kaze: Yup yup! Didn't take too long for the protagonists to meet._  
_Lazy Gaga: Thank you! I'm glad that you liked it._  
_Azab: Thank you! Sorry for not updating 'soon' but here it is._  
_DaphneHatake: haha I intended to portray Tezuka differently. I'm glad that you like it. Thank you!_


	5. Chapter 5

It wasn't in the young prince's plan to wake up earlier than usual. The palace personnel were yet to be awaken from their deep slumber, and he was probably the few people who were up and about to start another new day.

At the hour of the rabbit, the atmosphere was heavy with fog and was yet to be penetrated by the sun rays. It was the spell before the sunrise, and the dense fog made it hard to see ahead. Nevertheless, Tezuka knew his way around. It was his home and where he grew up for the past 22 years nonetheless.

He had to return to his chamber and attend the morning lesson with his master, so he was on a time restraint. Originally, he hadn't plan to, but due to the sleepless night, he couldn't help but feel worried that the stranger decided to run away again, not before he learned of the other's name.

Oishi's residence was in a similar state of tranquility as the palace. Since there were no guards on watch, Tezuka was able to permeate with great ease. Once in front of Oishi's private quarter, he pushed the unlocked door opened and let himself into the room quietly. It was quite dark in the room, but not so much that he couldn't see the furniture and decors. His gaze immediately sought for the bed and there he saw something that constricted his heart.

Fuji was moaning in his sleep, lightly thrashing and mumbling soft, non-coherent words. His chest rose up and down shallowly and quickly, while his hands clenched and unclenched on the bed cover almost painfully.

Coming closer, Tezuka saw a pain-stricken and pale face and knew immediately that Fuji was perhaps having a nightmare. And he did the first thing he could think of, shaking Fuji awake.

Fuji shot up instantaneously as if living on the thought that someone was after his life to sit up, facing the taller. Sweats were visible and trickling down his face that was marred with a terrified frown as his breath remained quicken.

"Hey." Tezuka said softly, eyes filled with concern as he took in Fuji's horror-filled state.

Since it was still dark, the first sense that came to Fuji was a reassuring voice that he recognized to be Kunimitsu's. "Kunimitsu-san?" His voice trembled as he asked uncertainly, hands reaching out to hold Kunimitsu's sleeve.

"I'm here."

Fuji let out a relieved sigh before letting his head fall forward on Kunimitsu's shoulder. There was a moment of silence, and he used it to calm his breathing. He was having a nightmare and he knew it because Kunimitsu was here with him.

Kunimitsu was surprised by their closeness, but relaxed himself as he let his other free extremity come up to rub Fuji's back soothingly. "I'm here." He repeated to reassure that Fuji was safe. A moment later, his ears picked up soft sniffling and felt Fuji snuggling close enough to feel warm breath on his neck.

He used the arm that Fuji was holding onto to pull to lithe and smaller man closer into his embrace. Not quite knowing what to do, he kept his silence and let Fuji cry on his shoulder.

When Fuji stopped crying, he noticed the sun was starting to rise by the brightness shown through the cracks at the window. That marked the time he had to get back to the palace before anyone found out that he was missing and starting to panic, but that thought seemed so mundane right now with Fuji in his arms. Nothing else seemed to matter or was more important than this moment.

"Do you want to talk about it?" He offered.

Fuji stayed still in the embrace and there was a moment of silence before Fuji started to speak in a hush voice. "There was death and blood everywhere...everyone died. They told me to run, but I didn't want to leave them." The memory of the war that caused the fall of the Fujiwara's Kingdom was etched freshly on his mind. The nightmare replayed of that scene over and over again, his mother who was in child birth while his father was heroically defending the Kingdom. He found himself crying again. "I couldn't do anything but let my sister dragged me away."

Kunimitsu felt his heart clenched in pity and pain as he silently listened on. Fuji hadn't been graphic, but he knew that whatever the young man saw in his dream, it was gory and unpleasant enough to cause Fuji to tremble like a frightened young child.

"To-san...Kaa-san...they all died."

Kunimitsu felt sorrow creeping into his heart, now knowing that Fuji was orphaned. The thought of finding Fuji's sister suddenly became a priority. He sat by quietly, listening to retold remembrance nightmare in tidbits.

"Are you feeling better?"

Fuji nodded silently before pushing apart and loosening his grip on Kunimitsu's sleeve, which had turned pressed to wrinkly. It didn't go unnoticed by him, even though he had more pressing issues on his mind. "I'm sorry." He murmured softly while attempting to smooth out the wrinkles he had caused on the silk material, but Kunimitsu stopped his motion by taking his hands.

"It's fine. "

"Well, um...thank you." Now that the worst had passed, Fuji suddenly feel conscious about how intimate he had been with a stranger and wondered why he had felt so safe in the other's arms.

Seeing Fuji fidgeting on the bed and the warm color shade visible on Fuji's face, Kunimitsu knew that Fuji was feeling uncomfortable with his presence so nearby and probably embarrassed for acting vulnerable, so he did what he could to make the other feel better. He cleared his throat and stood up. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Fuji throwing shy glances at him and decided to make nothing vocal of that. "Oishi should be in here soon." As he turned to make a leave, Fuji's voice stopped him.

"Are you leaving?" Fuji didn't mean to, but his voice came out pleading, as if he didn't want the other to leave.

Kunimitsu turned his head. "I'll be back later." He assured with a firm tone.

Fuji nodded slowly and watched Kunimitsu leave. The feeling of being alone crept back into

his mind as he looked around the room for the first time, noting the expensive furniture along the walls that contradicted the cute and soft decor adorning the flat top surfaces.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Oishi made a mistake not waking up earlier than he intended to avoid the servants and his family's suspicion of him sleeping in the guest quarter. He walked briskly back to his private quarter. Almost making it to the door, his younger sister Suzume came out from behind a pillar.

His flinch did not go unnoticed by her sparrow eyes as he regarded her brother's stranger behavior as of late.

He straightened up and asked casually. "Suzume, what are you doing here?"

Suzume flashed him a quick smile that wasn't genuine or fake, but effortless. "Taking a morning walk and wanting to see how you're doing."

"Ah. Everything's fine with me."

She nodded and flicked her gaze towards the direction that he came from. "Did you just returned from the book room?"

Automatically he nodded.

"From the looks of it, you just woke up, so does that mean you fell asleep in there and returned just now?"

He knew where she was going with this conversation. Because she had grown up with him as her mentor, he knew what her mind was like. She was curious, yet trying to hide it with her smooth interrogation skill. He decided to just answer all of her questions in one go. "Actually, I couldn't sleep last night, so I woke up early to find some information that Prince Tezuka requested and apparently fell asleep in the middle of it." He chuckled as he rubbed his nape. "It's too cold to be sleeping in there, I couldn't possibly spend the whole night."

Suzume looked at him with doubts. "What kind of information does the Prince want for you to spend 4 days in that small book room?"

Oishi kept his emotion in check, not letting anything out that would give his lies away. "It's confidential." He was surprised that Suzume had caught on since the beginning.

Her eyes then traveled to the door. "This morning, I heard a voice coming from your room."

That put him into a panicking mode. "What kind of voice?"

She smacked her lips. "Well, it certainly wasn't yours because it sounded soft and airy. I couldn't make out the words, but I'm quite certain that I heard it."

Oishi wondered who the stranger could be talking to. Could it be that he was sleep talking?

"You're not hiding anyone in there aren't you?" She narrowed her eyes as she leaned forward. If her brother was hiding a girl in there, then it would be catastrophic, considering that her brother was already engaged and especially unbendable at the thought of having a mistress, a child out of wedlock, or a secret lover.

This was unspeakable if true because she just happened to like her future *sister-in-law very much.

The question came so haphazardly that it made him feel unprepared. And because of his slow response, she moved to the door, pushed it open, and stepped in unwelcoming.

Oishi had no time to stop her or even utter out a word.

Her eyes darted around to see the bed left unmade. As she was surveying his room, Oishi came in and let his eyes roamed low to high for a presence of the stranger but he saw nothing. He was internally glad that the stranger was nowhere in sight but also worried that he was gone.

"There's no one in here." He managed to say after being sure that they were the only two in the room, or at least in plain view.

She twirled around to look at him with a sharp gaze before going over to the bed to flip up the bed covers and to look under the bed. _I'm pretty sure that there was someone else in here._ Her eyes darted around the room again.

Oishi let her do as she wished and made it seem like he didn't care, but in reality, he was thinking of all the possible places that the stranger could hid in, given that he was still here.

"I assure you that I'm not hiding anyone in my room." He sighed and walked over to where she was by the wardrobe. He stopped her hands from opening it. "Suzume. What's going on?"

Her hands stopped on the knobs as she looked at him with seriousness. "I know you're lying and I know that you've been hiding someone in here."

He opened his mouth only to close by her next words.

"Don't lie to me, brother."

"Fine." He let go of her wrist and looked at her with a challenging gaze. "Where's your evidence?"

She narrowed her eyes at him because even though she was right, there was no way to prove it. "Alright. You win this time." She conceded and left the room, feeling much unsatisfied.

He followed her out to close the door. When he turned around, the door of his wardrobe creaked open and out stepped the stranger.

"I'm sorry." Fuji offered, feeling guilty that his presence had caused undue hardship on the man, but Oishi shook his head.

He was thankful for Fuji's quick act. "Don't be. This is not your or anyone's fault. You did the right thing hiding in there though, or I've been in hot water with my sister, but more so with..." Oishi trailed off when he realized that he almost addressed Tezuka as a prince. "Anyways, are you hungry?" He momentarily forgot that Fuji was finally speaking to him.

Fuji nodded.

After breakfast was over, he mulled it over that now was most appropriate to inquire about his course. Oishi had looked hesitant for a moment before responding.

"You'd need to head west from here to leave town, and head north towards the mountain ranges..."

Fuji knew that Oishi didn't want him to leave and had an obligation to watch over his safety, so he decided not to be trouble for the man. "Kunimitsu-san...you called him young master?"

Oishi nodded.

"Was he the one that brought me here?" Fuji wanted to be sure.

Oishi nodded again.

"I see...Kunimitsu-san, who is he?"

"..."

Fuji watched Oishi contemplated over the response.

"Young Master is Minister Rouen's son." He had thought if Fuji would be vulnerable as it seemed that the stranger came from an isolated area and probably not know much about the people of the Alabaster Kingdom to discern his lies.

"It sounds like he's an important man."

_More than you'd know._ He smiled. "Young Master is a very kind and honest person even though he seems cold on the outside, so please don't misunderstand his good intention. You just need to get to know him."

Fuji felt more reassuring letting himself pulled under their wings more so today than yesterday, especially with Kunimitsu's comforting presence when he had a nightmare. The warm gesture that Kunimitsu showed him was more than he could ask, and he could only thanked the gods to let him be found by Kunimitsu.

"You must be in a hurry to leave, but if I may insist that you wait until Young Master comes. I'm sure he'd be glad to see you before you leave."

Fuji decided not to tell Oishi that Tezuka had already came by that morning, so instead he nodded and gave Oishi a reassuring smile.

As they waited, Fuji had made himself comfortable and busy with Oishi's small book shelf while the other was working on some sort of documents at the desk. Half of the books on the shelf were children's tales, making the man seemed like he was a married man with a child.

He was immersed in one of those books when his ears picked up approaching footsteps, and he knew Oishi had heard it too because his head had turned and eyes fixed on the door. There was a fleeting moment as both wondered if that was Suzume coming back to 'check' on her brother before Oishi's shoulders relaxed.

Fuji watched the man throwing him a smile before standing up to open the door, letting no one other than Kunimitsu in. He was up on his feet within the second with a bright smile on his face, suddenly feeling delighted to see who he had been waiting for.

Although small enough to be undetectable, Fuji caught the small smile beaming back at him. He could see that Kunimitsu was also glad to see him as Kunimitsu only looked at him the moment the other was in the room.

They met halfway in the center of the room.

"I apologize for the wait." Kunimitsu said.

Fuji tilted his head to the size, making him seen more youthful than he already was. "It wasn't long. I was enjoying the book." He threw a glance over at the open book laying on the book shelf. "It is a very interesting story."

Kunimitsu hummed, moving his gaze from the book back to Fuji. As he did so, he leaned forward and grabbed Fuji's wrist, pulling the other with him out the door with Oishi trailing behind feeling lost and left out. "Come. I have something prepared for you."

As sudden as it was, Fuji had no time to protest thus obediently and cluelessly let Kunimitsu dragged him in the direction that looked like it was leading towards the back door of the residence. Going through a double wooden door, they stopped and his wrist was let go. He found himself standing in front of two stallions with jaws almost dropped to the ground at their large size. They looked like war horses, granted that he had never rode a common horse or even seen a war horse.

Kunimitsu threw a quick smile at the reaction he got from Fuji before walking over to Zero, his black stallion. Standing next to the animal, he stood a little less than 2 heads higher than its head. He rubbed Zero's head gently and introduced it. "This is Zero."

Fuji watched silently as Kunimitsu whispered something into Zero's ears before the stallion took a few steps towards him and lowered its head to neigh softly at him. The sudden noise startled him a bit.

"Zero wants you to rub its head." Oishi prompted on the side line.

Fuji flickered a gaze towards Kunimitsu as if asking for permission and received an affirmative nod. He slowly lifted his right hand up to glide gently from the top of Zero's head to its nose. The stallion huffed softly as if purring and pushed against Fuji's hand, earning itself a lilting laughter.

Without knowing, Kunimitsu let out a carefree smile as he watched the interaction between the stranger and his stallion that he grew up with. If he wasn't enamored with this stranger already, then he would certainly be enraptured right at this moment.

While Fuji took his time playing with Zero, Oishi had walked over to Tezuka.

"Surely, you wouldn't bring Zero out for a joy ride." Oishi remarked exasperatedly as quietly as he could.

Zero was vigorously trained as a war horse. With remarkably lasting strength, agility, and endurance, it could go non-stop for a day with little rest. As such, Zero wasn't normally taken out for a 'joy ride' as Oishi said. It had more important agenda.

Eyes still locked at Fuji and Zero, Tezuka hummed in reply. "Hm."

Oishi's eyes drooped into narrow slits. "Then what's the occasion for bringing him out?"

"You'll see." That was all Oishi received before Tezuka left him to join the stranger.

"Zero seems to take a liking to you." Kunimitsu commented, standing on the other side of Zero's head.

Fuji smiled. "Zero is very nice and funny. I like Zero too."

Kunimitsu patted the stallion's head before turning his eyes on Fuji. "Would you like to ride him?"

Fuji jerked back in surprise. "Eh? No, I-I've never ridden one before." He refused quickly, but Kunimitsu was having none of that.

Being the only heir, he had always had things done his way and go everything he wanted, so this time too, shouldn't be an exception. Kunimitsu walked being Fuji and without a warning, lifted Fuji up and over Zero's back with ease. He smiled in satisfaction while Fuji was flabbergasted before finally realized that he was no longer on the ground. He let out a horrified shriek, almost toppling over at the high height before feeling stabilized by strong arms at his side, holding him in place.

Fuji glanced back to see Kunimitsu behind him, wondering how the taller got on behind him so quickly.

"Ready?" Kunimitsu leaned down to whisper into Fuji's ear, feeling how Fuji tensed up just a second before the small pale ear turned a shade of red. He smirked. Originally, he planned for both of them to ride separately, explaining the reason for the two stallion in presence, but after learning that Fuji had never ridden prior to this, an idea immediately came to him.

Before Oishi could fully comprehend the situation, Tezuka had already sped off with Fuji, disappearing fast from his vision. The second that he realized that he was left alone, he mount the steed and sped after the duo.

Frightened could best described Fuji's current state of mind. Zero ran so fast that he couldn't find the force to open his mouth to scream or make any noise, thus resigning him the only way to express how he felt was the quickening of his heart rate and stall of his breathing.

And Kunimitsu picked up all those subtle cues. He didn't slow down, but held Fuji closer to his chest. "Relax and feel the wind." He said soothingly into Fuji's ear, eyes diligently looking ahead. "Don't be scared that you're going to fall off because I'm holding onto you."

Strangely yet reassuringly, Kunimitsu's words made him feel more at ease. It wasn't immediately, but he slowly let his muscles loosen up and relaxed fully. He found himself leaning back to Kunimitsu's strong and warm chest.

It was a long ride, but Fuji felt that it wasn't as he was getting too comfortable in Kunimitsu's embrace. The sun was getting ready to set, but they were only at the outskirt of the woods. Kunimitsu got off the horse first before helping Fuji off after.

As his feet touched the ground once again, Fuji turned his head and looked around, having an idea where he was, but just to be sure, he turned back to Kunimitsu. "Where are we?"

After a deep breath full of fresh air, he faced Fuji fully. "We're going to where I first found you."

The firm gaze gave Fuji a sense of hope that washed over him like a tsunami. He hadn't given Kunimitsu much for the other to help him full heartedly.

A genuine smile stretch across Fuji's heart-shaped face as he looked at Kunimitsu in wonder. Though he still had doubts, a part of his mind subconsciously told him that Kunimitsu was a trustworthy person.

That mere smile gave Kunimitsu's heart a foreign yet familiar flutter, like the first time he saw Fuji at the river.

"Syusuke..." It came out unguarded, but Kunimitsu could pick up the slight hesitation that the other held from giving his full name. "is my name."

But that was to be expected, Kunimitsu thought, as he also only revealed his given name to Syusuke. After all, they were only at the beginning of their relationship. Trust and honesty were yet to be established at such a short time. "Syusuke." He tried saying out the name in a whisper, feeling how smoothly it rolled from his tongue. It had a nice ring to it.

At the sound of approaching hooves, both turned around and saw Oishi hurriedly getting of the stallion to run over to them. His face was full of worry and concern. "Please tell me before taking off, my young sir."

Kunmitsu scoffed lightly, seeing the dramatic look Oishi was pulling off so perfectly.

"I cannot count how many times that you've almost gave me a heart attack this week! I might as well be dead right now."

Fuji watched the interaction between the young master and his loyal subject with amusement. Despite the obvious fact that Oishi was a man, his behavior and thoughts were very familiar to that of a mother fussing over her teen child's not so great life choice. Meanwhile, Kunimitsu was acting like a disobedient yet confident child who never once had a regret for all the decisions he had made in his life.

"Enough." Kunimitsu reprimanded without any commitment as he looked sternly at Oishi. "I need you to do something for me."

That brightened up Oishi a bit as he was half expected to be ignored now with Fuji in the picture. "Yes? What is it?"

"Inform my parents that I will not make it for dinner."

Oishi stared dead-pan at his charge before blowing up into another emotional mess. "But Young master! I've just caught up to you and now you want me to leave you alone once again? And how long do you plan on being here? The K-" Kunimitsu's glare successfully stopped him from addressing the royal couple formally. "Your parents are going to skin me alive if they know I left you out here to fend for yourself!"

An elegant eyebrow rose as Kunimitsu looked at Oishi like his friend had painted his face white and expected to be scary. "Drop with the fuss." He commanded. "Do as I say or I will give you another task."

Oishi bid in a woeful sigh as he nodded in defeat. Knowing the prince, he might be told to gather some wild flowers. "Alright, as you desire, I will dutifully return and relay the message to your parents."

Kunimitsu nodded in satisfaction. "Good." He turned back to Fuji and placed a warm hand on Fuji's shoulder. "Come, Syusuke." He helped Fuji back on Zero again and took off.

Oishi watched as the pair disappeared within the trees. _Syusuke, huh?_ Even though he always acted like a fusspot, he tended to be serious when alone. If he thought it strange the night that Tezuka brought Fuji to his home, he would never expect the young prince to go this far for a stranger that went by the name of Syusuke.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Yukimura gasped in terror as he shot up from under the cover to find himself covering in sweat. Just as he tried to calm down his erratic breathing pattern, the door to his room opened and Sanada stepped in.

The protector's face turned from being stoic to worried. Sanada quickly crossed the room to sit down beside his beloved. "A nightmare?"

Yukimura shook his head as he let his body leaned forward and dropped against Sanada's chest in exhaustion. "A vision." He was awaken by a rather scary dream. He wouldn't consider it as a nightmare because it felt too true. It had to be a vision that only a dream seer could see in his dream.

Sanada had left his charge to an afternoon nap. Yukimura wasn't born a healthy child and wasn't expected to survive the first year after birth, but miraculously made it to today without any more health complications. However, his health was still a concern if tired out with lack of rest, thus subjecting him to equal hours of awake as asleep.

Sanada didn't expect another vision to appear so soon after the last one, which happened only 4 days ago. Usually, a vision only came to Yukimura when immediate importune events were bound to happen. Seeing how close the two visions were so close to the other, there seemed to be something big happening. Was it an overturn within the Kingdom? Or was it a war? He waited patiently until Yukimura was ready to tell him, but already knew that it wasn't good news by Yukimura's reaction.

"Has the sun set?" Yukimura breathed softly, seemingly back to his normal self.

"Yes."

The young lord sprung apart quickly, looking up at Sanada with big serious eyes. "How long was I asleep for?"

"4 hours. It's now the hour of the dog."

Yukimura gasped and quickly got off the bed to put on his clothes.

"What's going on?" Sanada's worried voice followed Yukimura around the room before the lord turned abruptly around to face Sanada.

The vision came back to him so clear that there was no possibility that it would be a nightmare. He saw arrows, not just a few but perhaps 2 dozens, flying towards Tezuka, who stood fearlessly waiting to be hit. His mind worked too fast to process Tezuka's safety concern that he missed out a figure being shielded by the Prince.

"The Prince is in danger." The words were breathed out so slow and dreadfully that they drew out a sharp gasp from Sanada.

Without wasting another precious second, both made way towards the palace.

TBC

**AN: **Seems like AL is losing some readers. Is it because of the delay in updates or lost of interest in the story line, I wonder... but its cool because I like writing AL for all those readers who enjoyed it. Thank You for your unwavering support! AL will never be abandoned!

Concept of time is as followed:  
Hour of the Rat: 11pm-1am  
Hour of the Ox: 1am-3am  
Hour of the Tiger: 3am-5am  
Hour of the Rabbit: 5am-7am  
Hour of the Dragon: 7am-9am  
Hour of the Snake: 9am-11am  
Hour of the Horse: 11am-1pm  
Hour of the Goat: 1pm-3pm  
Hour of the Monkey: 3pm-5pm  
Hour of the Rooster: 5pm-7pm  
Hour of the Dog: 7pm-9pm  
Hour of the Pig: 9pm-11pm

**Reviews Reply:**

**fujiyuki:** Tezuka will always find Fuji no matter where and what happened. Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.  
**supremekikay24**: Is this enough TeFu interaction? lol and a lil bit of SanYuk again. Updated! And its within the month too!  
**syuumitsu**: lol yes I'm bad with frequent updating, sorry about that. And please stay tune!  
**the runt duchess**: yay! I got a new enthusiastic reader! Thank you for giving this a try! And yes, I will keep working on it!  
**i love fuji**: aww~ I like how you paid attention to the detail.  
**yuu**: Thank you!  
**abbyjc**: Updated? And soon too...well at least for me that is. :)  
**wara ningyo**: SanYuk is a couple steps ahead TeFu, but don't worry, they'll catch up quickly!  
**reinbowbox**: haha thank you for loving SanYuk  
**daphnehatake**: hehe poor Sanada. Please stay tune


	6. Chapter 6

What he saw didn't make any sense. Surely, there was a battle here, at this spot. He remembered arrows flying after him, blades slicing through branches, and scuffling marks on the ground, but there was nothing in evidence of that night. No broken arrows. No blood. No sign of a previous fight that had taken place. No bodies. No anything.

Fuji frowned in confusion as all possibilities ran through his mind, but none came closer to explain this strange phenomenon. This could only mean that everything happened was a dream, a nightmare. _But it couldn't be_, he thought as he sneaked a glance at Kunimitsu stepping closer to the edge of the cliff. _We wouldn't be here if it hadn't happened. So what did happen?_ This must've been a work of something mystical, almost magical. It was this moment that he wished his sister was by his side to share her wisdom with him.

Even after many years of thinking to himself, he still couldn't figure out who was after them besides logically reasoned that they were rebels that took down the country. But to be persistent in their chase even after 16 years, there must be more to it than eradicating the royal blood line, his family and him, because the Kingdom had been fallen for over a decade. It would be immensely difficult to revive the Kingdom. There must be something else that they were after and either he or sister possessed it without his knowledge.

After stepping away from the cliff, Kunimitsu trailed closely behind with Zero in tow as he watched Fuji walking back and forth and moving from squatting to standing as he examined the surrounding.

Fuji turned back to look at Kunimitsu and released a disappointing sigh.

"Nothing?"

Fuji shook his head.

Kunimitsu looked up into the sky at the moon. It was almost the hour of the pig. He looked back down at the dejected expression on Fuji's face. "We should continue our search another day. It's late." He suggested.

The instant look of hesitation on Fuji's face told Kunimitsu that the other didn't want to go back yet. "It is indeed getting late." Fuji started as his gaze traveled from the ground to Kunimitu's eyes. "_You_ should return." He had no intention of returning empty handed.

Kunimitsu wasn't sure if he heard it right, but he caught the meaning underneath those words, so he continued to stare at Fuji.

"I need to stay here." Fuji continued. He needed to search the whole forest if he had to, just to find a clue about his sister, despite the magical disappearance of traces. The longer he delayed, the more suffering his sister might be facing. "I cannot return with you."

If this conversation took place back in the palace, he just needed to raise an eyebrow and glare daggers at whoever dared to defy his words. Then, things would go his way, but this was not the case. He didn't want to impose his authority over Fuji, who had not a tiny bit clue of his real identity, so he had to find another way to get through. "What if I give you my promise that I'll help find your sister?"

At the word sister, Fuji's body stiffened in uneasiness. Slowly, he dared to ask, "How did you know that I was looking for my _sister_?" He regarded Kunimitsu with suspicion. Did Kunimitsu have a hidden agenda for saving him? He hoped not because the idea made his heart hurt with the other's possible betrayal. He really hope Kunimitsu was not one of them.

There was a moment of silence as Kunimitsu debated on what to say. Seeing the apparent doubt and suspicion in Fuji's eyes, he knew right then that if he didn't tell the truth, their relationship would only go one way downhill, so he told Fuji exactly what happened that day, not leaving out any detail.

Fuji fell to silence and let out a breath of relief that he didn't know he was holding. Even though his separation with Yumiko had been leaving him in a pit, the knowledge that Kunimitsu was a good person washed him over with relief. So, there was someone he could trust and rely on.

"I've never gone back on my promises and never will. I'll have a search party set out immediately once we return."

The finality in Kunimitsu's voice affirmed his anxiety a bit as he slowly, yet reluctantly, gave a nod.

Kunimitsu lifted a hand, beckoning Fuji to come closer. Fuji took it and was hoisted up Zero's back.

The moment Fuji secured stability, he felt himself being pulled back down as quickly as he got up by Kunimitsu's hands. "What-?" Zero neighed in panic and turned to run away before he could process what had happened. He was immediately silent by a few more arrows flying their way as Kunimitsu pulled him into a run behind a large tree.

His eyes widened as he realized that they had been ambushed, by who he didn't know. He searched Kunimitsu's eyes to see a well guarded expression that he hadn't seen before.

Kunimitsu's ears twitched and he leaned closer to one side of the tree trunk. He shushed. "There are many."

"Who are they?" Even though he asked that question, he had a feeling it was the ones after him and Yumiko.

In contrast, Kunimitsu had come up with another theory, that they were enemies of the Alabaster Kingdom, striving to take down the royal family. He had probably been seen and followed since they left Oishi's residence. "I don't know." He answered truthfully.

A couple more arrows whizzed by their figures if not hitting the tree trunk they hid behind.

Kunimitsu felt Fuji's hand tightened in his grip, so he lifted his other hand to Fuji's face and lifted it up. "I'll protect you."

The anxiety in his heart suddenly disappeared as he took in those words and nodded his head. "I trust you."

Kunimitsu nodded. "Run as fast as you can." He prompted as he pulled Fuji forward and left their hiding spot. The arrows had stopped flying.

In the corners of both of their eyes, they could see many figures leaping out of the dark foliage of those trees behind them. They weren't able to get far away before the ambush circled in on them. Their hands were immediately disconnected as a man slashed a sword between them, separating them. Kunimitsu's sword left its sheathe and connected with a body, then another and another until he found his way back to Fuji.

Their backs stuck together as their eyes sharply moved to assess their situation.

"There are too many." Kunimitsu whispered only loud enough for Fuji to hear.

A sound of whistle echoed in the still night, causing a flock of avian creatures to fly into the night sky. Kunimitsu and Fuji immediately found themselves in another sword fight, defending themselves as they were separated again.

Arrows from the unknown directions flew towards them. Fuji was able to dodge most of those coming his way thanks to his agility. He heard Kunimitsu whistled, and a moment later, Zero came running back to them.

He saw Kunimitsu mounting the stallion before feeling himself hoisted up on horseback, securely in front. A second later, he heard a loud thud resonating to his ears and his body was pushed abruptly forward by Kunimitsu's larger body. "What-" Confused and curious of what happened, he turned his head to look at the other's face but was prevented to do so as Zero sprinted against the wind.

"Keep your head low." Kunimistu instructed with strictness as their bodies leaned down. An arrow flew directly above their heads, missing them by a few inches. Zero curved around the trees and jumped over overlying branches. Their path was festooned with arrows embedding into tree trunks and dirt ground. Some whizzed by, barely missing them.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Yukimura held up a hand as he pulled the reign to stop his horse. Shiraishi, Sanada, and Oishi abruptly came to a stop. His sharp eyes gazed around and ears tuned into the unbefitting noises of the forest.

"Arrows." Oishi whispered as his eyes widened.

"Hurry. We may be too late." Yukimura said grimly as he kicked his horse to a start.

The four horses sprinted up towards the sound of a battle raging in the distance. As they emerged to a clearing, a horse whizzed past them and they barely saw who was on it except for two cloaked figures.

"That was Zero!" Oishi quickly recognized, about to run after the stallion but was halted by men in black clothing going after Zero.

Yukimura threw a look towards Sanada and Shiraishi, and they both understood immediately the command. They flew forward and killed whoever was coming in their direction. "Come. We will go after them." Yukimura directed the command at Oishi and took off.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Fuji knew something was wrong when he heard the strange noise earlier, but Kunimitsu didn't give him a chance to query. He thought nothing of it as they were swiftly carried away until he heard ragged breathing from behind him.

This time, he turned his head and looked up to see a deep frown and drops of sweat masking the grim-looking face. "Kunimitsu." Fine lines appeared on Fuji's forehead to edge his worry, feeling in his gut that something was dreadfully wrong. The arrows had stopped, but the pursuers were still at their tail.

The first calling didn't seem to catch the other's attention, so Fuji tried again. This time, Kunimitsu flinched before gazing down quickly at Fuji.

"What's wrong?" Fuji asked, worry evident in his voice.

Kunimitsu was about to make a reply when all of a sudden, a shadow dropped from above, almost slicing off both of their heads. Zero neighed and screeched to a stop at the sight of an army of a dozen men blocking the path. Unfortunately, the quick stop didn't give them enough time to prepare and it threw them off the horse.

Fuji rolled on the ground a couple of feet away, but not far enough to hear a painful gasp and a groan coming from Kunimitsu. He lifted his head and saw an arrow protruding from Kunimitsu's back. Blood tinged his clothing.

Kunimitsu quickly whistled and Zero sprinted into another direction, leaving them behind. Fuji was at his side helping him up that instant. "You're hurt!" Fuji breathed out. His heart raced wildly and face contorted in worry. "Why didn't you tell me?" He begged, almost desperately.

For once, Kunimitsu felt deeply guilty for causing someone else to worry about him. He reached out to hold onto Fuji's arm. Before he could open his mouth, two shadow jumped in front of them in defensive stances acting as a shield.

The enemy did not waste a second and closed in on them.

Yukimura held off a sword that was coming down on them and he quickly whispered to Tezuka without looking back. "We'll hold them off."

Kunimitsu gave Fuji a tight squeeze and summoned all his strength to get up, pulling the other into a run in the opposite direction and leaving Yukimura and Oishi to fend off the enemies as they escaped.

They didn't know which direction they were going in, but the thicker foliage told them that they were going deeper into the woods.

Kunimitsu couldn't tell how far they have gotten away, but his mind was getting hazy and his strength depleting exponentially by the second. He blinked and shook his head as he tried hard to drag his feet in tandem with Fuji's faster pace. He heard the other's soft voice, but it was blurred out. He knew he was coming to an end soon, so the last thing he did was reaching back and used the last of his energy to pull out the arrow and let out a pained grunt.

"Kunimitsu!"

The weight of Kunimitsu became heavier as they slowed down. The moment he looked sideway, Fuji felt dread. Consciousness was seeping away from Kunimitsu. "Hang on." Fuji whispered desperately.

Kunimitsu's perspiration was soaking through and to Fuji's shirt. Fuji looked around for anywhere safe to take refuge. The wound needed to be taken care of quick. However, he could only see trees.

Kunimitsu grunted the last time and dropped his dead weight on Fuji, who let out a surprise gasp and let himself be dragged down. Unfortunately, the darkness of the night didn't let them see that they were running along the edge of an uphill. Fuji lost grip on the other and both were sent sliding and tumbling downhill.

It was a long way down before Fuji came to a stop and his body felt numb and pain all over. It was like lead and he hoped nothing was broken because he feel his body moving. There was no sound coming from Kunimitsu, but Fuji whispered his name. There was no response. Fuji slowly lifted his head up to see Kunimitsu's face laying on the leaf-covered ground not too far away, unmoving. Horror past through his eyes.

He lost consciousness for a few minutes before coming back to life. He gathered all his muscles to get up and crawled over to the other's still unmoving body. Tears started to gather in his eyes as he pull Kunimitsu into his laps. "Kunimitsu." His voice wavered and he choked a cry. He shook the other's body futilely. "Kunimitsu. Please say something."

His persistence paid off and Kunimitsu shifted slightly while groaning in pain.

Fuji's eyes popped open and captured Kunimitsu's face into his palm, but Kunimitsu's eyes remained close. "Please stay with me. I-I'll get us somewhere safe."

Kunimitsu lost consciousness again. Fuji ripped the hem of his outerwear and formed a gauze, putting pressure on the wound. He ripped another piece, longer, to wrap around Kunimitsu's torso to keep the gauze in place.

Looking around, Fuji spotted a cave with a stream running through not far away. He half carried Kunimitsu's heavier body to the mouth of the cave and set Kunimitsu down closer to the wall.

Using the water from the stream, he cleaned out the wound and repack it with a cleaner piece of torn cloth. He scooped water into his palm and got behind Kunimitsu, putting him into a reclining position before feeding him water. Fuji remained in that position, feeling a rapid decline from his strength.

As time slowly passed, Fuji found himself getting in and out of consciousness from tiredness as he strive to stay awake.

Fuji didn't know how long had passed, but the constant trembling from Kunimitsu woke him up.

"Kunimitsu?"

He looked to Kunimitsu' perspiring face and realized that the other had a fever.

Heat was emanating from Kunimitsu's body, but he was shivering.

Fuji hugged him tighter and sob silently, praying that Kunimitsu would get through this nightmare. He was scared of losing him. The thought of Kunimitsu dying caused his heart to squeezed painfully.

"Ma." His mother's gentle face smiling at him flashed in his mind and he wished she was still alive and was beside him. He let the tears flow as he cradled Kunimitsu's head to his chest. "Please don't let him die. Please Ma. Please don't take him away from me."

The tears splashed onto Kunimitsu's nose and eyes.

As he prayed softly to his mom, he didn't realize Kunimitsu came back to consciousness until a hand brushed softly at his cheek.

His eyes fluttered opened. His azure orbs connected to deep russet color orbs.

Kunimitsu let out a small smile and his hand squeezed gently at Fuji's cheek. "Beautiful." He mouthed and let his eyes close while lips remained content with a soft smile. His body all the while remained shivering as his hand dropped back down.

"You are burning, yet you're shivering."

In response, Kunimitsu snuggled closer to Fuji's chest.

Fuji tried blowing warm air and rubbed on Kunimitsu's body, but it didn't work. An idea came to mind, but his moral was blaring in alarm, telling him that it was a bad idea.

Another look at Kunimitsu's shivering form made his reasoning melt away without a second thought. "If it keeps you warmer, I'm willing..." His eyes softened and he leaned down to place a kiss on Kunimitsu's forehead.

He lifted Kunimitsu's torso off his laps and laid him flat on the ground. His finger came up to remove the buttons and ties of his clothing, slowly removing all articles until he was stripped down to the last undergarment. He opened Kunimitsu's robe and settled himself in direct skin to skin contact with the other's bare body. He then wrapped them both in their clothing, cocooning them in each other's bodily warmth.

Fuji ran his warm hand along Kunimitsu's back to provide friction as he laid his cheek against Kunimitsu's rising chest. The action unexpectedly stirred Kunimitsu awake and Fuji lifted his head to look at the other's face.

"Kunimitsu?"

Kunimitsu opened his dazed eyes before looking down at Fuji's face. His feverish mind had robbed him off his judgment, and all he saw and felt was something akin to lust. He wasn't thinking, and if he did so unintentionally, he wasn't thinking straight. His body was moving on its own, guided by his heart and hidden desire.

Fuji blinked in confusion at the haze expression in Kunimitsu's eyes. He couldn't tell if Kunimitsu was awakening or if it was a spontaneous reaction spurred by the subconscience.

Although Kunimitsu was wounded and feverish, his quick closing in caught Fuji in surprise, feeling dry hot lips on his own. His eyes burst open in alarm at the sudden intimate touch when he felt hands moving along his body.

Before he could think further or protest, Kunimitsu had moved on top of him, not disconnecting their lips for even a second, and Fuji heard himself moaning as his lips were parched open and a wet muscle was thrust into his mouth.

An intense heat washed over them both, causing them to breathe heavily.

"Ku...Ku...su..." Fuji attempted to break the kiss and wake the other up, but Kunimitsu's vehement advance wasn't letting him utter even a word. "Please...Ku...stop..."

Fuji was now gasping for air after Kunimitsu finally left his mouth to trail down his throat and disappeared downward.

A sudden release of his manhood startled him out of his pleasure-filled mind and he swiftly sat up, bringing Kunmitsu's head up to connect their eyes.

They stopped to stare and breathe heavily at each other.

Kunimitsu broke the moment by crashing his forehead against Fuji's. "Please."

The whisper was so quiet that Fuji almost missed it. He hugged Kunimitsu's head to his chest before moving to lay back down beneath the other. He let his hands run up and down Kunimitsu's arms in a comforting gesture as he gazed up into Kunimitsu's eyes. Without a word, he pulled Kunimitsu's head down for a slower kiss.

Fuji gave it willingly and whole heartedly. What made him give in so easily never crossed his mind at this moment. He could only feel how right Kunimitsu's body was on top of his. It was as if it was meant to happen.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Shiraishi and Sanada joined Yukimura and Oishi shortly after the Prince had fled the scene.

The four of them had turned the upper hand in their favor, as they were closing in on the last 2 of the enemy.

"Who sent you?"

Both of men behind black mask refused to back down and give in as they leveled their defiance at the blue-haired dream seer. The two exchanged a quick glance before dropping a smoke bomb and disappeared.

"It seems they have escaped." Shiraishi said as his eyes flickered around their surroundings.

"Find out who they are." Yukimura directed the order at Oishi before looking to Shiraishi and Sanada. "The Prince is injured and he is with another. Find them both quickly."

After Shiraishi and Sanada left, Yukimura turned to where Oishi was crouching beside a dead body and searching it for clues or symbol of the enemy's origin. As he walked towards another body, his foot kicked a metal spear laying on the ground. A shiny glint reflected the moonlight and his eyes caught a strange embossed insignia. Upon picking up the weapon, he saw a line like a spear running diagonally through a circle. It was an insignia that he had never heard or seen before.

"There's no need to look further." Yukimura called out as he dropped the spear and turned towards where his horse stood waiting. "Let's go after them."

Oishi followed behind without question.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

In a house located in a small village in the outskirt of Alabaster Kingdom, Yukimo awoke to find herself gasping for air as she clutched her chest. She had woken up to a nightmare in which Fuji was once again tortured to death by Leon. When Tetsuya rescued her from her early demise, she had gone into a short coma from the injuries she sustained, but after coming out of it, she woke up from a nightmare every single time her eyes closed.

"Yumiko?"

She looked towards the direction of the door to find Tetsuya walking in with a worried expression on his face as he regarded her pale and perspired face.

"Are you in pain?" Tetsuya crossed the room in quick stride to sit beside.

She shook her head and leaned forward to drop her head on his shoulder. He brought her into her arms and rubbed her back comfortingly. The action caused her to cry and he let her.

"Syusuke, he's fine, isn't he? He's still alive. He's not dead yet...right?"

Tetsuya swallowed a thick lump in his throat and brought her closer. This wasn't the first time she asked him those questions. He didn't know what to say because he had no answer. Instead, he routinely asked. "Was he alive in your dream?" He asked this because Yumiko had a strong sixth sense where it concerned her family's safety.

She shook her head. As she did so, he held her face to look up at his gently. His gaze softened as he spoke. "Then he is still alive. As long as you are still dreaming of him, he's still alive, and we are going to find him."

The determination and finality in his voice assured her greatly. "I can't lose him Shiroo."

He nodded and placed a kiss on her forehead. "We will look for him again after sunrise." He then lured her back to sleep.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

TBC

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

**AN: **Hello everyone! I have just completed my last semester of college! Woo! But now studying for my state board licensure exam. Boo! I will go on an updating spree, once I pass it, in July *cross my fingers!* If you do not see any update in july, that means I fail, so wish me luck!

Guest LFP: Thank you so much! That means alot to a writer like me!

Terei: Kept you in suspense didn't I?

Azab: I'm 's part was quite short. I'll have to think of something more for them!

Himitsu no Tsuki: My goal is to complete all stories, but I can't give an assurance when . One day...

I Love Fuji: I love you for reading!

Vegibee: lol you're one to like getting to the climax quickly.

Syuumitsu: haha I really wonder.

Cheese Rice: And thank you for stopping by! It's very nice to hear that from you!

Fujiyuki: Thank you! I have a huge preference for cliff hangers, because it creates tension! Though that may be a bad thing for readers...hmm.

Supremekikay24: I'm glad to hear that you're still here. What about now?

Aozora2502: They're moving quite fast, ne? Skipping the dating phase and jumping right into the marriage bed, though they weren't really married.

Wara ningyo: I figured it wouldn't make sense to use our modern way of telling time and thought of the animal time concept used in Chinese dramas that I used to watch long ago. So wahla!


	7. Chapter 7

Fuji woke to the sound of twigs snapping in a far distance. Not knowing who was going towards their direction, he raised his guards. Fuji hadn't a clue how long they had been asleep, but the sky was still dark. As he got out from their warm cocoon, his naked body was hit with cold mist in the air of the cave. He struggled to remove his underclothing and the inner layer, as his outermost layer was being laid upon, of his robe from Kunimitsu so that he didn't wake the other up.

His eyes made a quick survey of Kunimitsu and breathed a quick sigh of relief to see that the man was still alive. Albeit, Kunimitsu's breathing was somewhat irregular. He knelt down and fixed the clothing back on Kunimitsu.

The moment he stepped to the edge of the mouth's cave, a sharp blade nicked his throat, drawing a small line of blood trailing down his skin. His body stiffened, not daring to move or his head would be removed effortlessly.

A familiar male with wavy blue hair tied up in a pony tail spared him a quick glance before running over to Kunimitsu.

"Tezuka-sama." Yukimura whispered as he shook the Prince's body, only to earn an uncomfortable grunt. He knew not to address Tezuka royally, especially when he hadn't figured out the stranger's identity. It would be too risky for the royal heir.

Not long after, Oishi and Shiraishi appeared. Shiraishi was immediately over by Yukimura checking over the Prince's body while Oishi spared Fuji a surprised glance before his eyes caught sight of Tezuka's body. At the state of Tezuka's unconsciousness, Oishi suddenly forgot the situation Fuji was im, moving instantly to the source of his concern.

Upon lifting up Tezuka's clothes, they saw a poorly ripped cloth wrapped around his torso with a patch of dark red blood coming through from the back. The skin surrounding the open wound was a dark green color.

"He's poisoned." Yukimura announced grimly.

Fuji couldn't see what was going on behind him, but from what he heard, he figured they were checking on Kunimitsu's injuries.

"We need to get him back to the capitol immediately. Shiraishi, you will bring him to straight the healing quarter. And Oishi, you will ride ahead to inform of their arrival, but make sure not to alarm unnecessary attention."

Both men nodded to the instruction given. Oishi got up and fled out the cave while Shiraishi called his horse with a whistle.

Yukimura helped lift the prince up on horseback and sent them off.

Out of the four, Yukimura sent off an authority that was intimidating. Even without seeing where or what the other was doing , he could feel eyes on him from behind. He heard footsteps moved and they came face to face.

He then remembered that he saw these two at Oishi's residence the day after he woke. Yukimura had the same recognition reflected in his eyes before they sharpened, pinning him with a heavy gaze.

"Who are you?" Yukimura punctuated each word slowly and clearly.

Fuji had a slight idea where the questioning was going. He couldn't give away his identity.

"Search his body."

The order took away the blade against his throat, but hands were replaced. Anger swelled within, but he kept it under control, letting someone he didn't know trespassing his privacy.

Sanada, the lieutenant general, shook his head in negative.

"What is your identity?" Yukimura asked again.

"I'm just an orphan villager."

The smile on Yukimura's face was creepy, as if it was mocking him for being a liar. "Just a villager?" Fuji didn't respond because Yukimura didn't seem convinced.

Yukimura thought there was no way that this Fuji Syusuke was _just_ a commoner. Although there was nothing on his body to prove otherwise, the symbol he discovered on the assassins' weapons were strange. A mere commoner wouldn't have assassins with skill as high as the royal protectors going after his life.

"Don't lie. I have seen the symbol on the weapons the pursuers, and believe me when I say I do know every organization and cult there exist that opposed our sovereignty, especially those were trained to kill. This is the first time I came upon such symbol and it unsettles me to know that every intention in each of their move is lethal. If Young Master hadn't been with you and taken that arrow, you would have been critically harmed if not killed, so I suggest you start being truthful and answer the question."

The threat of torture was clear in each of Yukimura's words even though it was left unsaid. Fuji looked warily at Yukimura, but the penetrating gaze of the blue-haired man was too intense. He looked away, not realizing his mistake of his fluttering slightly, which was something he occasionally did that became part of a habit when he was frustrated instead of verbal of physical outburst.

Unfortunately, the corner of Yukimura's left eye twitched very slightly as it caught something out of the ordinary.

"Open his eyes."

Fuji flinched, head moved to dodge Sanada's hand that was going for his face. He pushed off the ground and landed not far away, but out of reach. His knees crashed to the floor as a sharp pain shot up from his lower back. Seeing a grimace on Fuji's face, Yukimura came to stand in between them, stopping Sanada from further action and facing Fuji.

A quick movement of Yukimura's left hand caught Fuji unguarded as a metal object flew towards him. He hadn't had enough time to evade it, thus sustaining a small cut on his arm. He hissed at the newfound pain.

It was a clear warning from Yukimura of his resilience.

He knew he couldn't defeat the both of them and get away. This man he was facing had proven himself with that simple attack and there was a low chance with the pain he was enduring; he attempted another way out.

"I am not your enemy; you have to believe me. If I was, I wouldn't have kept Kunimitsu alive."

"You call him Kunimitsu?" There was no emotion in Yukimura's voice, so Fuji couldn't tell if it was a bad thing. "What's your name?"

"Syusuke." replied Fuji after a quick hesitation.

"Why don't you tell me a story of how Kunimitsu and you met, hm?"

Fuji figured he was in for a long early morning since whatever lies he sprouted would be revealed anyhow. He sighed in defeat.

"He saved my life when we first met. It was on the night of the full moon..."

Yukimura thoughts went back to that day. It was the day of the ball. The Prince was supposedly dancing with all invited maidens and choosing a future queen for the kingdom, but he disappeared that night after Yukimura found him in the garden.

_So, it was that night._

- Flashback -

_"The moon is brightest and fullest at its best tonight." Inui analyzed as he stood behind mimicking what Tezuka was doing before he made his presence made._

_Tezuka tilted his head back to look at Inui before staring back up at the sky._

_Bringing his fingers up, Inui calculated nights of past full moons, its distance away from earth as shown by its size, and its surrounding stars. "Something big is happening tonight, if I'm correct in all my calculation and sixth sense."_

_Tezuka frowned, scrunching up his forehead. "You mean my future consort will be chosen tonight?"_

_Inui shook his head. "My analytical guess cannot give you specific results."_

_"I can give a better answer." A new voice said, softer and more feminine._

_Both turned around to see two newcomers. They were none others than Yukimura Seichi, the Royal dream seer and cousin to Tezuka, and his protector Sanada Genichirou, second-in-command to the Head Royal Guard, Shiraishi Kuranosuke, who was Tezuka's appointed protector._

_They both bowed their heads to Tezuka and received an acknowledgment nod from Tezuka._

_Inui, in turn, showed respect to Yukimura. "Milord."_

_"No, your future consort will not be chosen, but yes you will meet the bearer of your first born tonight." Yukimura continued._

_"Are you certain? I've yet to show interest in anyone tonight." Tezuka responded to Yukimura's earlier response._

- End flashback -

"Was he with you the whole night?" Yukimura wanted to confirm a suspicion. This was crucial information to decide whether Fuji should be under his protection or better off dead.

Fuji shook his head. "I don't know. I was unconscious for 2 nights and woke up under his and Oishi-san's care."

Yukimura continued staring. After a moment of silence, he spoke. "What did Oishi tell you about Kunimitsu?"

Fuji blinked, confused at why the nephew of the King was so interested. "He's Minister Rouen's son."

If his deduction was right, Syusuke was the key aspect to the future generation of the royal heir. But, wasn't Fuji a man? There was no way that a man can bear children.

Then, he remembered the strange glint he had a glimpse of earlier in Fuji's lidded eyes. It was as if he saw a blue moon. He saw Fuji flinched as he came closer and knelt down.

Fuji leaned back a bit from their close proximity.

"Do you know what a Dream Seer is?"

Fuji tentatively shook his head.

"You see." Yukimura began. "A Dream Seer is a gifted individual with the ability to see the future and prophecy in his dreams."

"Are you...a Dream Seer?" asked Fuji as he moved slightly away. Would Yukimura discover who he was in his dreams? This man was dangerous.

Yukimura smiled, unexpectedly. "I am. And I'm curious about something Fuji-kun."

Fuji kept silent, waiting.

"You..." The suspense really made his heart hammer wildly in anticipation. "Are you a hermaphrodite?"

The reaction he received from Fuji was far less than expected. It was nothing but confusion and cluelessness. "I'm a man, not a whatever you said." Fuji said deadpanned.

Yukimura would've laugh if not for their situation. Could he be making a mistake? "You've never heard of that word before?"

Fuji released a heavy breath through his nostrils. "Don't call me that again. I'm a human male. See? I got a head, body, arms, and legs like everyone else."

Their situation somehow turned comical. Yukimura sighed and stood up. He walked to where Sanada was standing. "Bring him back and lock him up. We will continue questioning him after we get a rest."

Sanada nodded to the order and roughly pulled Fuji up, earning a small growl from Fuji, but he didn't mind it as he dragged the latter towards where his horse was waiting. Yukimura was already on horseback ready to go.

Two days passed and Fuji was getting more restless than ever. Yukimura set an order for him to be locked in a room somewhere surrounded by bamboos and dirt paths. He wasn't mistreated though. Three times a day, someone would deliver meals on trays and left without saying a word. He tried escaping the first day, but the person bringing in his food knew how to fight.

Although he knew how to save himself, the person was a few levels higher than he was. Besides, long-range attacks were more of his style, so he gave up trying escaping that way.

As he sat waiting for the night to deepen, his thoughts grew on Kunimitsu's wellbeing. He wanted to see the other, but the guard in front of the door refused to relay the message to Yukimura. He was refused the privilege to attain audience with anyone, even the lord himself.

"Lord Yukimura will see you when the time comes."

Fuji let out a breath of frustration and turned back to the room with the door being closed by the guard. It seemed, Yukimura had put a high security watch on him because he could tell how observant and alert the guard was to each of his movement. Escaping any way would be hard.

That night as he lie on his bed, he had a dream of someone with red eyes going chasing his mother through the woods. A man was covered in blood, running beside his mother.

_'I don't think I can go for much longer.' His mother said in a breathless voice._

_The man beside her looked horrified and worried. 'It'd be the end for you and your bloodline if you're caught. We need to split up as soon as we reach our base. Just hang in there for a bit longer.'_

_Beads of sweat ran down both of their grim faces._

_A spear from nowhere whizzed past their faces in between them, grazing her cheeks lightly. Droplets of blood flew through the wound._

_'Are you alright?'_

_His mother nodded. Their feet were getting tired, but not giving up. _

_Luckily, they kept a safe distance between their pursuers as they reached the base. A woman dressed in warrior's robe was there to meet them and they moved deeper within the fortress._

_'How's the baby?' The woman asked, wiping beads of sweat of his mother's face. The man had joined the defenders out front._

_'I can still feel it inside me.'_

_'That's good. We need to move location and prepare for the child's birth.'_

_The moment his mother stood up, pain racked through her body, sending her back down. 'It's too late. I think it's coming.'_

_The woman looked nervous. 'We have no choice then. Rie! Prepare a bowl of water and clean cloths.'_

_A girl ran into the room with the items. Through sweats and screams, the baby made it through the passage a long while later. It was a baby girl. As she slowly opened her eyes, his mother and the woman watched expectantly._

_His mother broke into a smile. 'She's definitely the heir. Her name will be Yoshiko.'_

_Oceanic blue eyes looked up, paralyzing Fuji in his own dream._

Fuji sat up quickly dripping in sweats, hearts pounding in his chest. His mother look-alike, he realized, was actually his grandmother.

He sat thinking in silent of why he dreamed of a segment of the past that happened way long before he was born. And why was his mother called the heir. Heir to what? As far as he knew, his mother wasn't royalty. She was only wed into one and made into one.

Not far away, Yukimura was in a deep sleep. Seconds after Fuji left his dream state, his eyes shot open, clear and sharp, as if he hadn't been sleeping at all. He sat up slowly.

The slight movement caused a stir under the blanket.

"What's wrong?" The voice of Sanada sounded in the night as he sat up to sit beside Yukimura.

"Strange, I dreamed of grandmother." There was a contemplative look on Yukimura's face that Sanada didn't dare disturb.

Yukimura saw his grandmother aiding another woman giving birth to a baby girl with blue eyes that froze his core and gave him goosebumps, but it wasn't that that alarmed him. It was Fuji's face abruptly awakening from his sleep replacing the dream of his grandmother that made him confused.

_An heir to what? _

And was he dreaming Fuji's own dream? He didn't know that it was possible of a dream seer, to override dreams of a dream, and it scared him a bit.

He flung the cover off his body and got off the bed, making his way towards his study, where rows of books and documents stacked in neat orders. He took a kerosene lamp by the doorway and looked row by row until he found what he looked for.

The book was actually a very old diary that was owned by his grandmother, left to him by his late mother. He took it over to the table, set the lamp on it, and began flipping the pages.

Sanada stood by the door quietly, watching his charge and secret lover with concern. When this happened, it usually meant that he saw something important but not urgent in his dream.

**Entry 36: Yoruichi-sama has conceived the heir, as the bright blue light surrounded her like a mask of pregnancy. She is joyous, but greatly distressed for their oncoming days will be difficult and full of challenge. The army will likely has sensed the conception and soon be on their way searching for the light. It will be hard to hide the heir until it is born.**

The entry ended there and continued to tell the stages of pregnancy. He skipped through all those to get to the day of the birth.

**Entry 149: Beautiful Yoshiko is born. Her eyes are blue like her mother's, a typicality of a hermaphrodite. It cannot be mistaken, for she is the heir. Yoruichi-sama had planned to get to Fujiwara Kingdom and raised the babe there to become the future queen. Only in that way that she'd get the protection she needs. **

_Protection from a royal family? Just how powerful and dangerous are their pursuers?_

Yukimura thought back to the pursuers in the forest. _They were highly skilled and great in number._ _Could they be the same pursuers from his grandmother's era? How can a grudge be carried on for ,so long, even to this day?_

_But then, was Yoshiko ever married into royalty?_

**Entry 165: So it seemed that the Aphrodite's lineage is secured. Yoshiko's brother was baited and mistaken for an heir in sacrifice for her secret to be safe for years until the next heir is conceived.**

_So, the heir is of the Aphrodite's lineage. I've never heard of it, but could it be the one that mother's was trying to tell me before she died?_

His mother had the chance to only tell him the existence of hermaphrodites and urged him to be the protector of that race, but she passed so suddenly in the middle of the night.

He turned the page to read on, but stopped short before flipping the pages consecutively.

Thereafter, the ink faded into indiscernible words. He slammed the book close and went to put the diary where it was, but before he slid it in place, a piece of paper fell out.

**The blue of their eyes are as heavenly as the sky on the purest day. In itself, the existence of the heavenly bloodline on earth is just magical and majestic. Can an heir be a male? Maybe it is in their lineage that they**

The ink faded, leaving too much to interpretation.

This person in his custody, Yukimura thought, did he have anything to do with history of the blue eyes successor? And what of the red-eyes he saw in his dream?

He sat burry in deep thoughts, recollecting what he had learned and putting them in one big picture.

_Yoruichi-sama was the heir of the Aphrodite's lineage, for what it's called a hermaphrodite and in that a hermaphrodite possesses blue eyes. According to this note, a hermaphrodite is a heavenly being that walks on the face of the earth...so what was his grandmother trying to finish saying in that note? Do they have magical power? or ability?_

Then, he remembered the prophecy he had of the Kingdom's future heir. _Prince Tezuka met him the night that he was supposed to meet the bearer of his children, could it be that whatever grandmother's note wanted to say...? Maybe it is in their lineage that they can give birth like a woman?_

He decided that it was time to see Fuji. He adorn his outer garment and left with Sanada following closely behind.

Back in the room, Fuji suddenly felt odd. Something in his belly was stirring and giving off a warm glow. His eyes widened at the sudden appearance of pulsing blue light. He was too terrified to move an inch. The light didn't last long. It slowly dimmed away and everything that felt odd went away as well.

He heard voices beyond the door before it was opened and Yukimura came in.

"Why are you up this late in the night?" Yukimura's voice was gentle like a lullaby.

"Couldn't sleep."

Yukimura nodded, but pinned Fuji with a gaze of doubt. "Hadn't you been wanting to see me?"

Fuji stood up to stand in the light that pierced through the wooden ceiling of his temporary shelter. "I want to see Kunimitsu."

Yukimura crossed his arms and titled his head to the side elegantly as he regarded the other with an unreadable expression. "What I don't quite understand is...why are you deeply concern for someone who you have only met for such a short time."

Fuji kept a straight face. "He saved my life twice, isn't that enough for me to be concern about his well-being?"

The dream and entries pieced together nicely. If there was a pattern developing between them and the current situation, it must meant that Fuji had a plan of his own to become a royal family member. So then, was Fuji the heir referenced in his grandmother's diary? It wasn't a for sure conclusion because he wasn't even sure if Fuji had blue eyes.

If not for the lineage, Fuji could be trying to get close to the Prince to get the protection he needed, and that would only put the Prince and the Kingdom in danger. Then again, Fuji didn't know Tezuka was the Prince.

"Alright. I'll take you to see him, on one condition."

Fuji looked at Yukimura with anticipation.

"Tell me...what color are your eyes?"

Fuji frowned in annoyance. "I don't understand why you are so bent on invading my privacy."

"I saw your dream in my dream." Yukimura observed Fuji getting stiff. "That woman with Yoruichi-sama is my grandmother."

"How dare you take it upon yourself to invade my dream!" Fuji snarled, angry that he was seen through, but Yukimura kept calm.

"I told you, I am a dream seer and it is a special ability bestowed to me. You may think that I have plans to hurt you, but I don't. My bereaved mother begged me to protect the next generation of a hermaphrodite, an heir to the Aphrodite lineage, as her last dying wish." He paused, gauging Fuji's reaction, who unexpected scoffed looking at him as if he was crazy.

"I have a hunch that you may be a Prince of the Fujiwara Kingdom."

Fuji took a deep breath and released it. "Fine. Since I can't really hide anything from you, so what if I am a former Prince to a lost Kingdom? I am no longer a royal and have accepted fact long ago, but I'll tell you once again that I am not a..." Fuji's eyes knitted tightly as he tried to think that word Yukimura used. "a...whatever -dite you keep saying! So stop asking me if I'm from that lineage because as far as I know, I am not one."

Yukimura closed his eyes and took several calming breaths before opening them back up. He could tell Fuji was indeed clueless about the lineage and was telling the truth. "I'll take you to see Young Master right now."

The unexpected offer caught him off guard. "Eh?"

Yukimura smiled. "Didn't you want to see Kunimitsu?" Never had he referred to the Prince this way, so it felt strange.

Looks of doubt were clearly shown on Fuji's face.

They walked silently in the night towards a an unknown direction, that Fuji gathered. There was nothing familiar about the place. The walls were high and guards stood on duty at every inch and corner. Whatever this place was, it was highly watched.

Fuji hurried up to fall in tandem with Yukimura's quick strides. They went through alleys and desolate areas where not many people passed by and even if guards or others saw them, they didn't approach.

Finally, they came through a entrance to large courtyard with a scenery of a zen-like garden. In the middle was a red lined on beige walled edifice. Two guards in front of the door bowed to Yukimura as they now stood in front of it. A second later, the doors slid open by maids on waiting through the night for them to step through.

They passed through a few more sliding doors before standing in a dark room facing a large-sized bed. In the darkness, they could only see the contour of a person lying still on the bed. Soft breathing was the only sound heard.

Fuji stepped away from Yukimura and walked to stand on one side of the bed. As he sat down, the visage of Kunimitsu's peaceful face became clear as a result of the moonlight shining through when Yukimura pushed the window open.

Kunimitsu's complexion was warmer in shades compared to the last time he saw him. He ran his fingers gently around Kunimitsu's face and smiled, glad to see healing at work.

Without hearing any noise, Yukimura was already beside him.

"Has he awaken since?" asked Fuji as he slowly took his hand away to rest it on the bed next to Kunimitsu's hand.

In a soft whisper, Yukimura replied. "He woke this morning, but didn't regain full consciousness. It seems his body is still fighting the poison."

Fuji's fingers crept slowly towards Kunimitsu's hand, interlacing.

"It's my fault he's like this. If we hadn't met..."

Yukimura could hear tears choking in Fuji's throat. Feeling a strange sadness for the other, he placed a comforting hand on Fuji's shoulders and assured him. "Do not worry. He is recovering quite well and fast."

"Can I stay with him for the night?"

Yukimura looked quietly at Fuji, contemplating if it was safe for him to agree to the request, but something in Fuji's body language said that he really cared for the Prince. "I'll come back to get you before sunrise."

Fuji nodded in gratefulness and lie down next to Kunimitsu, hugging him as he sang a childhood song.

When Yukimura came back later, he found Fuji exactly where he was left, except sleeping. He went by the bed to shake Fuji by the shoulders gently, making the latter stir and slowly sat up.

"Let's go."

Fuji nodded. When Yukimura turned away, he quickly bent down to peck Kunimitsu's forehead and followed the other out.

As they left the courtyard, 2 pairs of eyes watched after them as they disappeared around the corner.

"Who was that with Lord Yukimura?" inquired with curiosity in a female's narrowed eyes. She was elegantly dressed in a high-quality silk kimono paired with crystalline hair ornaments in her neatly arranged hair.

"I do not know, Milady. It's a face I've never seen around the palace before."

"Keep an eye open and find out who it is."

"Yes, Milady."

**TBC**

Author's note: Going back to continue a story is extremely hard! No plot bunnies. Details and storyline forgotten! I'm in trouble! Took me days to try and think of what to write. The result was...a complex story line. Okay, if anyone have trouble following, I don't blame you. I need to get my head straight. Anyways, if you haven't done so, **check out my new story**!

Thank you **azab, Guest, Himitsu no Tsuki, moribayashi, wara ningyo, XLightningX, I Love Fuji, devi no kaze,** and **supremekikay24**!


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